Along Came Sora
by Shura Pirate
Summary: AU: Leon's life was tidy and orderly. He had a set day for laundry, trimmed his bonsai tree every other Tuesday afternoon, and above all, liked cleanliness. Luckily, his wife Layla was similar. However, around their anniversary a chasm called Yuri ruins Leon's marriage, leaving him to question his life. Then along came Sora with her spontaneous, messy ways...
1. Chapter 1

AN: I figured I needed another 'M' story up since _Love and War_ is taking me a while.

AU: Characters older - mid-twenties or so

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Leon Oswald was 22 years old when he met Layla Hamilton.

To be precise, he _chose_ to meet her on the second month of the year, on the twenty second day of 2012, making it 2/22/12. If he could, he would have met her on the 22nd month if the monthly system worked that way and he wasn't willing to wait for 2022 to make her acquaintance, making him 32 years old when they finally meet.

The odds of her being around in 2022 were slim - he was entering his last years of undergrad school and he wasn't certain yet if she had chosen to go into the masters program, which could lead into a doctorate. If she did become a grad student, there would be a lesser chance of him having anything with her - he knew because he did the calculations of the probability of her staying at the same school to do those programs. By the time he was 32, she would most likely be married with at least two children under 10 and a half years old.

So he had to settle for the 2nd month of the year he turned 22.

He didn't like to settle but alas, such was life.

* * *

He was 23 years old now.

On 3/3/2013, they decided on seeing each other regularly.

It was the closest thing to dating as he had ever envisioned. She thought the terms 'boyfriend' and 'girlfriend' were misleading. Neither of them were children and they weren't just friends. She was relieved to hear that he didn't like those terms either.

The distaste of silliness was something they had in common.

* * *

4/4/2014 was the month of decisions.

He decided to graduate. She decided to wait on her masters.

Then, as they told each other their decisions, they decided to get married.

* * *

6/6/2014 was the date they were supposed to get married at the courthouse.

However, there was a mix up and they were scheduled to be married later, 6/17/2014.

It wasn't right. The numbers bothered him. It wasn't all even or odds or even similar digits. He tried changing the date, but her family were already flying in for that day. It would be too much of a hassle to change it.

He was bothered by it, but he came anyways.

* * *

5/15/2015

At the tidy desk of Leon Oswald stood a man around his age.

This man with pale blond hair and violet eyes was Yuri Killian, heir to the 'K to K Accounting' company that Leon worked in. He was a year older than Leon, being 26 and looking smart in a white suit with a purple dress shirt underneath. He was new to the office, having graduated from his masters in business. From what Leon heard, he was shooting for a doctorate. Leon thought of all of this as he continued typing at his desk, waiting until the man did something to break his concentration.

"So Oswald..."

Leon stopped typing. Talking was a common disruption to his focus. He sighed to himself, taking off his small square computer glasses and putting it securely in its case, right next to his bonsai tree before turning his chair around to the speaker.

"I heard that we got some kind of a firewall breach?"

"Yes."

Yuri crossed his arms. "And how do you plan on fixing it?"

Leon sniffed a little derisively. He didn't like Yuri's accusing tone.

"I'm in the process of locating the origin of the breach."

"Origin?"

"Yes." Leon sharply swiveled back and put his glasses back on. "By finding the source, we can dam the leakage up." He typed rapid codes of 1s and 0s. "Whoever opened it up probably clicked on some link in their spam or an online ad." His computer beeped as he traced the source. His grey eyes rolled upon reading the information. "Apparently some fool opened up a porn site on our servers."

Yuri blinked at that. "Porn?"

"Yes." Leon typed some more. "It wasn't one of our main computers...and they used Internet Explorer. Idiot," Leon muttered under his breath. Every tech savy person could tell you that Internet Explorer was the most virus susceptible browser on the planet. "I'm getting a lock on the computer..."

"Maybe it was by accident."

"For over an hour? Unlikely."

"Listen Oswald." Yuri leaned his head to speak lower. "Maybe you can just patch up the breach without -"

"Found it." Leon tapped a few more keys, printing out the data. "It was on the corporate floor on a backup computer." Leon grabbed the top printed page. "Computer YK - 007."

"Ah, that's...fantastic." Yuri cleared his throat. "Now about patching - what are you doing?"

"I'm faxing the results to the heads of each department."

"Don't do that!"

Leon lightly frowned. "Why not? We need to be aware that our employees are misusing our computers."

"Oswald - look." Yuri placed his hand on Leon's shoulder. "Can we keep this under wraps? I mean, there's no reason to punish everyone for one person's mistake. That's why you're here." He laughed a little. "You clean up all the messes splendidly."

Leon eyed the hand on his shoulder and then looked down at the computer name.

"It was your computer."

The typing in the cubicles around him paused altogether. Yuri took his hand off of Leon's shoulder and then straightened his suit jacket.

"That is a wild accusation. If you send out that piece of fiction you call research, I will have you fired and without any recommendations." Yuri lifted his head up. "Do we understand each other?"

Leon said nor did anything for five full seconds. Then, he nodded.

Yuri left his cubicle and the typing began again.

While waiting for the elevator to take him to the lobby, Yuri checked his phone. The elevator dinged, and he automatically started walking in, but then immediately paused upon seeing the tall blond exiting the elevator. To Yuri, she looked fresh in her cream skirt and baby blue blouse.

"Excuse me," came her cool tone of voice.

Yuri gave her a smile. "Of course."

She gave the man a glance as he made a show of giving her room to walk. Then, she turned her face forward and headed for her husband's cubicle. They were due at the travel agency and then they'll have lunch.

Yuri watched her walk a couple of seconds more and then he went into the elevator.

At 12:10 in the afternoon, Layla met Yuri.

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AN: If the dates annoyed you, I promise you, that was mainly for the beginning. This chapter's kind of a prologue to the rest of the story.


	2. Chapter 2

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 _Late January, 2015_

23 year old Sora Naegino looked around the room, her multi-colored scarf whipping about as she moved sporadically. She'd start to look at one aspect of the room and then something else would suddenly catch her eye, making her change directions.

"It's spacious enough, I think." She turned back towards the landlady. "How much did you say rent would be?"

"$600 a month, not including utilities."

"Oo." Sora shuddered at the price. "A little too much for this room." She tested the shutters and some moths flew out of it. "It's all bug infested. And don't get me started on the rusted bars on the window."

The 22 year old landlady, May Wong, crossed her arms. "Then you don't have to take the room. I have a lot of other potential housemates."

"Not when they see this rat fur you call carpet," Sora quipped. "Ok, how about $400 including utilities, and I replace the carpet?"

"Make it $450."

"Deal!" Sora grinned. "Oh and the deposit?"

"$500."

Sora put her hands on her hips. "Seriously? More than one month's rent?"

* * *

 _February, 2015_

May watched as Sora placed wooden planks across the floor.

"You said you'd replace the carpet."

Sora wiped her forehead as she inlaid the last piece. "I didn't say with carpet. This is much better. Trust me."

May rolled her eyes. "Whatever. I gotta go sing at the pub. Lock the back door if you go out, kay?"

"Yeah yeah. Don't pull a voice muscle or whatever."

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 _Some lousy time after midnight._

Sora's brow ticked as May's bed was still rhythmically squeaking.

 _"Oh you bad boy..."_

She put the pillow over her head. Times like these she really disliked the fact that she got this place. The walls were too fricking thin.

"Just come already!" Sora shrieked. "Some of us work in the morning!"

 _"Shut it, Sora!"_

Sora reached down to the floor and grabbed her shoe. She threw it hard against the wall where May's bedroom was. Her eyes widened as she heard the lamp smash onto the floor.

"Oops."

The mattress squeaking stopped. _"Did you break something?!"_

"No! You're going senile!"

* * *

 _Late March or Early April, 2015 (lost track of time)_

"You fell asleep on the job again."

Sora snorted as she lifted her head off of the counter. "Well nobody comes in this curio shop."

Her boss sighed. "That's the fourth time this month. I'm gonna have to let you go. Unless..."

Sora tilted her head. "Unless what?"

Her forty something year old boss gave her a creepy, gap toothed smile. "You help me forget those incidents."

She stared at him and then stood up. "Ok."

"R-Really?"

"Yup. I'll help you forget."

He rubbed his hands together. He'd never gotten such a casual response to an illegal sexual suggestion. Today must be his lucky day. Sure, she was an idiot, but a curvy idiot to be sure. He blinked as she grabbed something off a shelf.

"H-Hey, what are you - "

She smashed a 300 year old vase over his head. "I hope you forget." She dusted her hands against her pants. "See ya."

She hummed to herself as she exited, but not before snagging a pretty charm bracelet as a souvenir.

* * *

 _Late May (maybe?) 2015_

Sora poured out some wine and then began placing them on her silver tray on the table.

"Ok." She smoothed over her black skirt and then lifted the tray. "Oop, the towel thingy."

She bit the towel off of the table and placed it along her left arm. She spat out some little towel fuzzies and then straightened up. With a smile on, she pushed the small kitchen door and was out on the floor. Some light jazz played in the background as people mulled about. It was some accounting company's fundraiser - she forgot the name of it.

Not that she needed to know.

Someone hailed her and she headed over.

"White wine?"

"Thanks doll face."

The guy took some glasses. She smiled and then walked away. These higher up functions seemed to be better than some of the other jobs she's had. In the other places, people thought she was stupid so they could degrade her or just touch - She jumped a little as someone pinched her butt. And here she thought this job would be different. How disappointing.

"Who touched me?"

A couple of guys snickered to the side. "Don't look over here, honey. I'm a married man."

She huffed. _Idiots._

"It was me. I apologize."

She blinked at the admission. She turned around to scold the man only to falter.

"Do I know you from somewhere?"

The tall silver haired man tilted his head, looking away from the white string he just picked off of her skirt. "I believe you do." He went through his mind, shifting through memories. "Were you in Miss Hanshire's fifth grade class?"

"I was! Oo, wait, wait! You were that kid crazy good at math - I remember!"

He shook his head in amusement. Most people remembered him as the OCD freak.

"I tried to cheat off your math test once," she merrily laughed, "but your problem solving was too complex for me to get!"

He slowly blinked at that. He didn't remember that.

"Your name starts with a J...No! An 'L'...Lionel? No - Leo?" She started snapping her free hand to help jog her memory. "Leon! Am I right?"

"I'm impressed."

She grinned widely. "Do you remember my name?"

"Sora Naegino," he said without faltering.

"Oh wow. I guess you have a crazy good memory too. So the super genius works here huh? Well good for you! I had a feeling you'd make it big."

"Big?"

His wife wouldn't consider what he did now as 'big.' She kept pushing him to strive for a higher position. But honestly, he liked being the tech guy of a stable business.

"Well, I need to do my job. Give me a holler if you want wine."

She gave him a little wave and then went further into the crowd.

He looked down at his watch: At 8:34, he was reacquainted with Sora.

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	3. Chapter 3

AN: Your reviews made me really excited! I'm so glad people are intrigued by the setup so far. :3 Thanks for the support!

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Out in the parking lot of 'K to K Accounting' stood a young man.

Jed was new and excited to work, however, the pristine white car that kept backing out of the parking space and then adjusting itself forward again only to stop halfway and reverse again was strange enough to make him not enter the building just yet. The car moved forward and then paused, making Jed think that the driver was finally done, but then it reared back barely an inch.

It was the strangest thing he had ever seen.

The trainer of the new employees came up behind Jed to enter, but then paused to see what was holding up the man. He looked over at the white car and then chuckled.

"That's Leon Oswald, our techie. He's anal about things being perfectly aligned."

Jed looked over at his trainer from orientation. "But when does he know it's straight?"

The car door opened a little and Leon looked down at the white parking line on the asphalt. They saw him shake his head a little and then close the car door. They assumed the car moved for the rear lights were on, but there hardly was any movement.

"His car fits perfectly in his parking space."

"What?"

"Oswald came on his day off to repaint the parking space lines," the trainer shook his head, "He even used a leveler to straighten the measuring tape." He looked down at his watch and frowned. "He should have it straight by now." Sigh. "Crap. Something must have upset him." He shrugged and then walked towards the doors. "Come on. He's going to be out here for a while."

Jed quickly followed his trainer. "Won't he be late?"

The trainer laughed. "He doesn't start work until 8:30am."

Jed looked down at his watch. It was barely turning 8:00am.

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As soon as he woke up this morning, Leon knew that today was not going to be a great day.

Maybe it was the fact that his clock was off by a minute and 33 seconds or the fact that he woke up alone in bed, which really wasn't odd. Though, what was odd was the fact that his wife was looking over color pallets on the kitchen table without having made up her side of the bed. The sheets on her side was still crumpled and her pillow was completely crooked - plus her pillow could have done with a fluff up.

She was an interior decorator, considered to have sharp, but chic taste by the heads of modern office and home makeover magazines. It really wasn't her original plan to be a decorator, but the masters program had been more than she thought it would be. When she had redone Leon's office cubicle, she found that she had taken some sort of pleasure in the task.

It was better than some menial minimum wage job, so she looked into it.

Usually, he woke up in time to see her fixing her make up. Then they'd greet each other and he'd get out of bed, kiss the side of her cheek and then head to the bathroom for a shower. So technically, he always woke up alone in bed, but not alone in the room. When he made it out to the kitchen, he found Layla still in her robe and no slippers on, just staring at the color pallets. He kissed the side of her cheek, but for some reason, he felt like she would have preferred that he hadn't. The tiny little frown on her face was the culprit of his assumption.

The differences upset him.

His fingers slipped on the keyboard, accidentally hitting "enter" instead of "shift". He let out a long breath and backspaced. His typing rhythm was off. He didn't like to be off in anything. Some guys near his cubicle were walking back to their desks when they saw Leon walk out of his cubicle with an empty mug.

"Hey Oswald!"

Leon barely glanced at the man and then continued walking. He heard some rapid footsteps and bit back a sigh. He was hoping to get some coffee before something else went wrong. A co-worker coming over to blab with his buddies close by most definitely was 'wrong' in his book.

No one came to Leon unless they needed tech support.

"Hey man," the co-worker stood in Leon's line of view as he fixed up a cup of joe, "my buddies and me were just talking about the fundraiser last week." He leaned kind of close. "Saw you pinch that redhead's butt."

Leon poured some creamer into his cup. "I was getting a stray string off of her skirt."

"Riiight." The co-worker grinned. "So did you also help hang her skirt? Iron it the next morning?"

"...What are you implying?"

"Nothing! Just...wondering if you had a good night's sleep that night." The man leered a little. "Or did her snoring keep you up?"

Leon sighed to himself. It was juveniles like this idiot that made the workplace aggravating. He turned around to grab the usual Monday morning donuts when he saw that the pink box was not on the break room table.

"Where's the donuts?"

The co-worker shrugged. "Dave called in sick today. So no donuts."

Yet another thing off today.

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The donut shop had been a little further than he thought, but he made it.

"Welcome to Tim's Terrific Donuts!"

Leon sharply looked at the redhead at the counter. "Sora Naegino?"

Sora blinked at the address and then laughed. "Leo! No, Leon! Haha! What a happy coincidence!"

"I thought you worked as a server."

She continued putting new donuts on a tray. "That's a 'once in a while' kind of job. This is my main job." She dropped a donut and picked it up. "So you want some treat or something before doing your big job?"

He slightly winced as she bit into the donut she dropped. "That was on the floor."

"Eh. Ten second rule."

He _hated_ that "rule." He desperately wanted to find the person that told the general population that stupid time limit rule and shake some sense into him. How could dropping something on a public floor still be considered clean within ten seconds? It was a _whole_ ten seconds. A lot could happen in one second. Imagine what ten seconds could do...

He faintly shuddered at the horrible possibilities.

"I'll take 50 donuts." Pause. "After you wash your hands."

She shoved half of the donut into her mouth and still managed to get out a laugh. She muffled out something, but he didn't understand what in the world she just said to him.

"Could you repeat that after your mouth is free?"

She swallowed a huge lump - he could practically see the massive chunk going down her throat. "I always wash my hands before serving, silly!" She went over to the sink and squirted a bunch of soap on her hands. "50 donuts, you said? That suppose to last you the whole month?"

"No, it's -" he paused. He was getting a bunch of donuts for some imbeciles that knew Dave the Donut guy was out long before he had clocked in. Why hadn't anyone else gone to pick this up? "You know what, make it 1."

"You got it hotshot," she winked. "You want a plain one, right? Just glazed?"

"Yes I -how did you know?"

"Well I just realized that your office gets donuts from here and no one's ordered any this morning." Sora went to the side of the counter where one little pink donut box was sitting. "And they always ask for one plain glazed donut in its own box. That's yours, right? Back in middle school you liked your food to not touch other things."

She brought him the box and he opened it. Inside sat one perfectly glazed donut. He was speechless for five whole seconds.

"...You glazed this?"

"Oh no!" She snorted in her laughter. "Ken did in the back. I'd just screw it up."

He nodded his head in understanding. What he knew of her, he could see her making a mess of the glaze, which was why he was initially confused when he thought she had glazed it. But now things made sense.

He paid for the donut and she sent him on his way with a smile.

When he was back at his desk, he bit into the perfectly glazed donut and felt that just a little part of his day would be alright.

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AN: If you haven't read the updating note on my profile, I'm not able to update as frequently as I used to, but I will still work on my stories! :D


	4. Chapter 4

AN: I've been wanting to update for so long now! There's just not enough hours in the day! :/

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Life with Layla was fairly calm and stable.

He liked it that way.

They generally didn't talk much except when they were discussing books or the news, but it was more of the fact that neither one liked to use more words than what was necessary to speak, rather than them not having much to talk about. Ever day life was cluttered with too many words in movies, the radio, tv, even just getting a cup of coffee at the register. So much time was wasted by saying things that didn't need to be said. People just didn't appreciate the silence anymore or the subtleties of every day life.

At least, that's how Leon saw it.

However, when he arrived home before Layla and she came home a good two hours later than usual, he felt like some words explaining would have been nice. It wasn't like her to be home so late, especially on an evening when they were supposed to go have dinner. They didn't eat out often, seeing as not many places fit the bill for tidiness and cleaniness, plus overall calmness of atmosphere. He noted that there were more and more families bringing their kids to nicer restaurants. He didn't have any particular ill will for children, but he wasn't a fan of having to watch his step as he got up from his chair because of children suddenly darting out in the walkway without looking or having some stranger's child braid the end of his long hair after seeing the child pick her nose.

No, he did not like the unexpected. It was usually nauseating.

"It's 8:06," Leon quietly admonished as Layla entered their home. "We're late."

"The restaurant will still be there," she calmly stated as she slipped off her heels.

He sighed to himself as he saw her grab her bathrobe. She was starting to unzip her dress, but the zipper got caught. He walked up and worked the zipper free without asking. She stood still as he fixed it and slid it down her back. She was so slender, considering her tallness and her hair was silkier and glossier than his. He admired those aspects about her.

"I was worried," he softly said, his fingers stroking between her shoulder blades.

She shivered a little and then turned to look at him from over her shoulder. She could see the bit of yearning in his eyes, even though he was upset.

"I won't be late next time," she murmured.

She stepped away from him and walked off to go shower.

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"You were quiet at dinner."

Layla stayed on her side of the bed, looking out into the darkness of their bedroom. "Didn't have much to say."

Leon frowned a little, not that she could see even if she had been facing him. "Is this new project worth the stress?"

She half chuckled. "Not at all."

"Then refuse it."

She let loose a wiry smile. "It's...challenging." In ways he wouldn't imagine. "But I think I like it."

"Layla." Pause. "I know we both agreed on it, however..."

"Agreed on what?"

"Limiting the physical," he lightly ran a finger along her arm, "not getting pregnant before we're ready. But...Layla, I want to."

He didn't see it but her hand fisted her pillow.

"You want me," she clarified.

"I do."

She turned over, finding herself face to face with him. "I thought you hated messiness."

He gave a tiny shrug. "We can shower afterwards."

"We can..." she trailed a finger along the collar of his pj shirt. "But it's late." Her finger left him and she turned over, giving him her back. "I need to get up early in the morning."

He was tempted to touch her long, blonde hair, but restrained himself.

"Alright."

But it truly wasn't.

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AN: Not to worry, I plan to get another chapter up soon! Just wanted to give more of the dynamics between Layla and Leon.


	5. Chapter 5

AN: Note that there are multiple postings for this story today! Watch out which chapter you read!

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Work was annoying.

Leon hated annoying, but it was better than being bored, he supposed. Computers were crashing and the newbies kept calling him up to have their passwords reset. Most of the time, it's just that they're typing it in too fast or the caps lock was on and they didn't realize it. But as long as it wasn't a security breach, he tried not to be too upset about it.

It was Tuesday now which meant two things:

1) His bonsai needed attention.

2) It was the 16th of June - the day before their first year anniversary.

They made plans last month to go on a vacation getaway for their first year. Despite it being somewhere tropical, sandy, and most likely humid, he was actually looking forward to it. However, they weren't leaving until the 20th, seeing as the 17th fell on a Wednesday, making it the middle of the work week. His boss would have understood, but Leon couldn't bring himself to leave on such a random day of the week. Saturday made more sense. Plus, it was the 20th - a nice, round number.

He let out a tiny smile at the symmetrical ring that number had. He snipped his bonsai with a pair of small, silver clippers and carefully groomed the little tree.

Snip, snip.

His phone shrilly rang out, making him pause.

He sighed. The peace was too much to hope for. Between work and Layla's aloofness, he was in desperate need of some stability. He wasn't quite sure what was off with his wife. He eyed his ringing work phone, seeing the caller id. He put the clippers down and smoothly straightened himself to align with the phone before he picked it up.

"Hello Layla."

 _"Hello Leon. I won't be coming in for lunch."_

Polite, but straight to the point. He both liked and disliked that quality of hers.

"Is something the matter?"

 _"No. Why do you ask?"_

He shrugged to himself. "You've never cancelled lunch before."

 _"This project's taking longer than I had anticipated."_ Pause. Some murmuring in the background. _"I'll see you tonight."_

"Until tonight."

She hung up before him, leaving him with the dial tone. The sound was even louder than normal. He put the phone back in its receiver a little harder than usual. He picked up his clippers again, intent on finding some sort of normality to his Tuesday.

Snip, snip-snip-sni-

He muttered a curse. That was one leaf too many off the right side. Frustrated, he tossed the clippers on his desk. He needed to get some air and most likely some food. He ran a hand along his armchair. Despite being known as a lone wolf in school and at work, he actually couldn't stand eating alone.

He tapped his fingers five times and then looked up a number on his computer. Finding the place, he dialed the number, memorizing it in the process as his fingers moved over the phone keys.

 _Ring, riiinngg..._

 _Click. "Thank you for calling Tim's Terrific Donuts! What can I get you today?"_

"Will you have lunch with me?"

 _"I swear, if you're that punk kid that called yesterday about wanting to take photos of me in my underwear I'm gonna find you and - "_

"It's Leon."

 _"...Leon Oswald?"_ Laughter. _"Hey sorry about that! Kids these days like prank calling too much, you know what I mean? Little perverts."_ Sigh. _"So you want some lunch? We don't really sell food-food. Just donuts and muffins, you know? But you're more than welcome to order donuts for lunch!"_

He was starting to wonder what made him call Sora for company.

"No. I don't - Never mind. Sorry I bothered you."

 _"Hey now, you sound kind of glum. What's got your goat?"_

"Glum?"

 _"Down in the dumps, melancholy...take your pick. But I hope you choose a happier verb!"_

He shook his head at her chipper mood. "The day has been...disappointing." Pause. "The last 13 days actually." If he felt like it, he could get it down to a more precise total, but he wasn't in the mood for exactness.

 _"Mmm...That sucks. You know what always makes me feel better? A big tub of ice cream with caramel syrup and marshmallows. I eat that stuff so much, I'm surprised I'm not fatter!"_

"I'm surprised too."

 _"Haha. So what's your comfort food? I'll bring it over in like, 15 minutes when my shift ends."_

"Comfort food..." He really didn't have any particular item he snacked on in excess. "I find myself craving some sort of pasta."

 _"Pasta...Ok! I have a great place in mind! You work at M to M Accounting right?"_

"K to K."

 _"K to K? Then what's M to M?"_

"I do not know."

 _"I'm sure I'll figure it out! Haha!"_

He was certain she wouldn't.

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45:05

That was how many minutes and seconds had passed since his phone call with Sora. He sighed to himself. She said 15 minutes. How could 15 minutes turn into - he looked down at his watch - 45 minutes and 22 seconds? Should he just forget about lunch and eat on his own or should he wait for her? He could eat whatever was being served in the break room. Mandy and Linda liked to organize a lunch potluck every other Tuesday. He could probably snag something from there.

Almost immediately, he dismissed the idea.

Who knew how clean the cooks' hands were and where they were making the food? Seeing how messy people were at their desks, he couldn't trust any of them to not poison him.

He supposed he could wait some more.

His foot tapped on the floor. His brows furrowed. He was always waiting on someone, wasn't he? He never really initiated the action, instead waiting for someone else to start it.

Not this time.

He grabbed his wallet from his desk drawer and then punched out for lunch.

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The donut shop was chaotic.

Police were out front with some punk kids handcuffed along the sidewalk. Leon tentatively inched forward, trying not to give in to the fear that something had happened to his old classmate. He looked around the crowd, trying to find a peeking of red anywhere.

And he did.

He blinked as he faintly heard her raised voice and seeing her animatedly talking to a police officer. He walked closer so that he could hear what she was saying.

"...Punk kids always harassing the women in this place!" She turned around to scream at the kids on the sidewalk. "Your grandmas would be ashamed to their graves if they knew what you were doing! I told you I'd find you you little brats!"

"Um, ma'am, I need to go back. Is that all you want in the report?"

She swiftly turned back around to the officer, "No, that is not all! This is a serious issue officer! I've only just started to - " she finally saw the tall silver haired man approaching her. "Oh hey Leon! What brings you- doh!" she smacked her forehead. "I was supposed to bring you your pasta! I swear, I was coming over until these numbskulls," she gestured to the sidewalk, "decided to cause trouble again! Kids these days, I tell ya."

"Are you alright?"

She blinked at the question. "Yeah, just fine." She smiled. "Did I worry you when I didn't come over?"

"Well, yes."

She grinned. "And you came to check on me." She reached up and pinched his cheek. "How sweet!"

He rubbed his cheek when she let go. She pinched kind of hard. He was certain she left the area red.

"Come on," she grabbed his hand, "let's go eat. I'm starving."

When people usually grabbed his hand, he recoiled. He was surprised to note that there was no urge to break out of her hand's hold. It was petite, smooth except for a few callouses along the palm. If anything, he wanted to continue holding her hand.

He let go of it.

She blinked at the sudden loss of his hand. "What's wrong? Oh, is it the germ thing? Don't worry, my hands are clean."

"No, I just...wanted to check my pocket." He fished out his wallet. "I was not certain if I brought my money."

"Oh. Haha. I guess even geniuses can forget things."

He looked down at his left hand where his wedding ring sat. "Yes. They can."

And for both their sakes, he will not forget again, however slight a relapse it had been.

"You're going to love this place!" Sora continued walking ahead as Leon followed closely, but not holding hands. "They serve the best mac and cheese in Cape Mary!"

"Mac and cheese? The child's meal?"

"Hey, it's for adults too! They have this oven baked bread crumbs one with mushrooms and bacon..." she shivered in anticipation, "it is the bomb! Oh and if you're into seafood there's lobster mac and cheese too! And then there's..."

They continued walking away from the donut shop, her talking and him listening.

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AN: I might get another chapter in, but it'll be shorter probably. Trying to make up for lost time!


	6. Chapter 6

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Leon was rarely surprised.

So when they entered this 'bomb' mac and cheese place, he was more than a little surprised that it didn't look like Chuck E. Cheese with wild children all over the place. It was casual, laid back with the couches and tables in one corner and an outdoor patio on the other end. Some acoustic music played over the speakers to not make the place uncomfortably silent.

"Melancholy is not a verb."

Sora had been humming along off key as she sipped her iced tea, one leg folded under her. The outdoor chairs were a little higher than the indoor ones, allowing her to swing her free leg under the table. Most of the time, she bumped into his leg. He didn't pull away nor did he fuss over it. Her humming and swinging stopped with his statement.

"What?"

"The word," he elaborated. "When we spoke on the phone, you said it was a verb." He looked across the street at some rental bike shop. "A verb is an action you do."

"You were action-ing melancholy," she quipped.

He shook his head at her. " 'Action-ing' is not a word."

"Why not? Shakespeare made up words and phrases," she slurped the last drops of her tea, "why can't we?"

He hummed. "Shakespeare did," he conceded, but then a tiny grin appeared on his face, "But doesn't mean you should."

"Ooo, I feel the burn," she laughed, leaning a little over the table, "You, Leon Oswald, have a wicked tongue."

He knew she did not say that with any other hidden meaning behind it, however, he couldn't stop himself from reading more to it, especially with that mischievous smile playing on her face and her upper half leaning towards him.

...Or did she really say it with a double meaning?

He leaned over the table so he'd hover over her just ever so. "When the moment is right."

A little red appeared on her face, but she kept his gaze, her teeth coming out to bite the left side of her bottom lip.

"What makes this a right moment?"

The corner of his mouth twitched upwards, but he did not reply back. He simply sat back in his chair and crossed his arms. She blinked owlishly at his retreat. Had she been too forward too soon? She thought he'd welcome it, based on his own actions. His left hand moved to grab his drink and her eyes widened, seeing the golden band on his ring finger. She withheld the urge to smack her forehead. He was married. She wracked her brain for when he told her - he did tell her, right? - and nearly groaned when she recalled him mentioning a wife back when they first met at his company's fundraiser. Why did she forget such a vital tidbit of information?

She hated being her sometimes.

A bit embarrassed at having made a move on a married man, she sheepishly sat back in her chair and put her straw in her mouth. She sucked up some drops of water and a ton of air, making a loud slurping sound. She put the cup down quickly. She forgot she ran out of tea.

What was wrong with her today?

Some sliding sound made her look back at the table. She blinked as he pushed his glass of water over to her and then left it there.

"I do not require liquids at the moment."

The gesture made her smile. They could be great friends. It was possible, right?

She put her straw in his glass. "So what mac and cheese did you choose?"

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AN: Shorter than the last one, I know. But I thought it was important to get a feel for where Sora and Leon stand.


	7. Chapter 7

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"You're awfully quiet tonight."

Leon slowly blinked at his plate and then looked across the small square table to his wife. Layla was making notes in her interior design journal as she chewed on a piece of broccoli. He had been thinking about lunch that afternoon and then how the rest of his day seemed to have zoomed by like a thin cloud in the wind.

"No more than you," he calmly replied.

That made her look up from her notebook. In a moment of sass, he lifted his fork of rice pilaf in a mock salute and then put it in his mouth. She quirked a brow. She hadn't expected that. She capped her pen and then closed her book.

"You're playful."

He paused in chewing. He could have sworn he heard an approving tone in her voice. Her chair was pushed back and she slowly walked over to his side of the table. She leaned against the table, her hip close to his hand. He noticed everything, even the expectant look on her face.

He wiped his mouth and then folded his napkin. "Now you want me."

She tilted her head, some blonde locks falling over her shoulder. "There's time." She leaned over to kiss him.

He let her.

His eyes closed as his hand went up to her chin, his fingers lightly brushing her skin. She always felt like satin to him, sliding over against him and then falling completely away from his grasp.

Tonight was no different.

She pulled away to see his face. His eyes were still closed. He didn't want to open them. She frowned a little and then stood up, picking up her notebook and then leaving the table.

"I'm going to the studio," she crisply told him.

When he heard the front door open and then close, he opened his eyes. He looked down at the hand that had touched her and then fisted it.

For a couple of crucial seconds, it was not Layla he wanted to touch.

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When she came home, Leon was still up.

She was surprised to see him drinking some scotch. He rarely drank from that decanter.

"We need to fix this," he murmured.

She put her purse down and crossed her arms. "Fix what?"

"Us."

Layla stared at him long. Then, she sat down on the couch across from the armchair he was sitting on.

"We can't fix this." She rubbed her arm a little. "Not right now, anyways."

He put the glass down on the table. "We can try when we go on vacation."

"Leon, we're not going."

He frowned. "What do you - "

"I refunded our tickets. The vacation's off." She looked up at him. "We need some time apart."

"Apart?"

She nodded. "I need to think things over. Recall what it is that I want in life."

He ran a hand over his face. "Is this about your masters? I told you I can support both of us while you studied."

She lightly rolled her eyes. "With what income Leon? We live in a house a relative left you and we're still paying off the car loans and undergrad loans." She stood up. "No, Leon. I cannot continue like this."

Despite the fact that he really didn't want to, he blurted out, "I'll look for another job. Something that pays better."

She slowly shook her head. "It's too late for that."

He looked down hard at his wedding ring. "Do you no longer care for me?"

When she stayed silent, he gathered the courage to look up at her and almost immediately wished he hadn't. She looked at him like a stranger pitying a beggar on the streets.

"I'll get my things tomorrow morning."

She went into their room and he barely noted through his shock that she came out fast. She must have had a bag packed already and hidden in the closet.

He sat back on the chair, feeling his world spin into disaster.

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AN: He tried. Poor baby. :(

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	8. Chapter 8

AN: It makes me so happy to see you all enjoying this story! :D

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Not for the first time Leon was glad he was a loner.

If he actually had friends, they'd be wondering why he didn't look happier on his anniversary day. Technically, he wasn't leaving for his anniversary getaway until the 20th, but he had planned to celebrate with a nice dinner and maybe dancing if the floor wasn't too crowded. He paused in typing. He would need to cancel that reservation. He had to plan it weeks in advance just to get on the wait list.

So much for that idea.

He typed harder, his frustration making him want to take it out on something. He wasn't sure how long Layla needed some space nor did he know if she would indeed ever return. He was left on the shelf to collect dust until she felt the urge to pick him up again.

Will he always be waiting?

Someone's phone loudly shrilled. He winced a little. He shouldn't have kept drinking after Layla left, but he had the rare urge to drink some couple of glasses more. He lightly rubbed his right temple. What he wouldn't give for some pain killers.

Perhaps he should request a half day.

If he cancelled his two week vacation - not saying why, of course; that would be too humiliating - he couldn't see why his supervisor would be against him leaving early today. He rarely did so and his supervisor was an understanding man for the most part. He nodded to himself. He will do it. He picked up the phone and called his supervisor.

 _Ring...ring...click...'This is Mason Dirk. I'm away from the office until Monday. Leave a message and -_

He promptly hung up and quickly logged into his e-mail. There was a message sent yesterday night about not being here today or Friday. Leon softly cursed at the end. All inquiries and such were to be left with Mason's supervisor.

Yuri Killian.

Could his day get anymore terrible?

At least he could just call the man. He found Yuri's number and waited for someone to pick up. His secretary picked up, telling him that Yuri's phone had broken yesterday and he would need to come in person. With a sigh, Leon put his computer to sleep. Of all the rotten luck...he was ready for the day to be over with already.

He quietly made his way to the elevator.

When he got to Yuri's door, there was a 'do not disturb' sign on the door. He quirked a brow. It was an office, for crying out loud, not a hotel. He knocked and Yuri allowed him in.

Leon closed the door, taking in Yuri's own pitiable state.

His tie was loose and his usually slick hair was everywhere. The man wore some designer shades and had a glass of water on his desk, to which Yuri dropped in two tablets. Leon watched as they sizzled in the liquid. Even though he looked like a bus hit him and then backed right back into him, there was an air of satisfaction to him. Leon thought it bizarre.

"Take a seat Oswald."

Leon sat down in front of the desk. Yuri took a long gulp of the drink, made a face, and then loudly placed it back on the table.

"Long night," Yuri apologized with a laugh.

"That is...unfortunate."

Yuri half grinned. "Not that kind of a long night." He cleared his throat and smoothed his tie over unsuccessfully. "So what can I do for you Oswald? Someone broke too many computers or something?"

Leon had been staring at some carved figurine on Yuri's desk before he looked back up at the man. He had wanted to talk to Mason about cancelling his vacation time, but now that it was Yuri he had to ask, he didn't feel comfortable saying it. The little nitwit would probably want to know why. Leon didn't want to tell him why.

"I would like to request a half day, starting at 1."

"Wouldn't we all?" Yuri laughed.

Leon refrained from saying something back.

"Well, you do have enough vacation hours," Yuri hummed as he looked on his computer, "despite the two weeks you got off." He clicked on something and then looked back at him. "Sure, why not? It'll be on me."

Leon slowly blinked. "On you?"

"A couple of hours off on a slow day wouldn't kill anyone. You can clock out remotely."

"I...thank you." Leon stood up.

"Don't mention it."

Just as Leon was heading to the door, some painting on the wall made him pause. The frame was hand carved like the figurine but stained a dark oak color to give it some depth. His eyes widened as he recognized the piece. Layla had asked his option on it, after all.

"Is something the matter Oswald?"

Leon numbly turned his head a little. "Just admiring your art."

"Ah yes. I like it too." Yuri twirled his tie a little. "Got one of those interior decorators to add a woman's touch, as they say."

Leon grasped the doorknob hard.

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After seeing Yuri, the rest was a blur.

Leon only realized he was at the donut shop when the smell of maple and sugar hit his nose.

"Welcome to Tim's Terrific Donuts."

Leon blinked at the young teen behind the counter. "Where's Sora?"

The red brunette tilted her head, her curious blue eyes big. "Sora doesn't work here Wednesdays." Then, a bit of suspicion entered her eyes. "Who are you anyways? A stalker?"

"I am not a stalker," Leon crossed his arms. "I'm a friend."

"If you were really a friend you wouldn't be looking for her here."

He sighed. "I'm a new friend."

"Uh huh...Look mister, you seem nice and all, but if you keep asking me where Sora is, I'm gonna call the cops."

"Let's not call the troops just yet, Rosetta."

Rosetta and Leon turned to see the newcomer.

"Nice to see you again, Mr. Oswald."

Leon nodded his head. "Ken."

The pastry master and expert glazer carried in a big tub of supplies. "It's ok Rosetta. He's good." He turned back to Leon. "You can find her at the people dog park over on 9th."

"A dog park?"

"Yep."

Why was he not surprised?

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As soon as he parked his car, he debated about going back in it.

There were several slobbery, hairy mutts all over the place, running, licking, chewing, and even - heaven forbid - _urinating._ He wouldn't even _think_ about them doing 'number two' in a public place. Some woman passed by a guy. They paused as their dogs started sniffing each other's behinds.

Why on earth would people let strange dogs do that to their pet?

He shuddered a little.

"Heel!"

He looked to his left. Her voice sounded far. He walked onto the concrete pathway to try to see her. When he did see her, his eyes widened a little. She was walking - no, being dragged, more like - three large dogs down a hill, but the largest of the three was starting to run.

Against his better judgment, he went out onto the grass.

He was about to tell her to pull on their leashes when he saw that she didn't have the leashes in her hand. No, she had them tied to some hip harness around her waist. Why the devil would a petite woman do that? He was going to have to talk to her about the lack of foresight that decision had been.

She screamed a little and then started laughing once she got the hang of their speed. He gaped as she ran with them down the hill. She was going to trip in some hole in the grass and roll over the dogs. Then, they were going to bite her and he'd have to take her to the hospital for 50 stitches.

She met him at the bottom of the hill.

"Whew! Ok, now heel for reals!"

She tugged on the leashes. They slowed and then stopped right at Leon's feet. He took five steps back. Their panting was making the slobber leak from their mouths.

"I really never thought I'd see you here of all places," she half laughed, half panted out. "But here you are! Where's your doggie?"

"I don't have a dog."

She tilted her head. "That's kind of like going to a daycare without a kid."

"I came for you."

She blinked several times. "For me?"

He wasn't certain if the pink on her face was from the run or not.

"You once said you eat ice cream when upset."

"...Yeah, I do...Soo..."

He looked down at the ground, his head drooping a little. "I need ice cream."

"Oh." Pause. Then her eyes widened in understanding. "Ohhh..." she frowned a little but then smiled again. "Well, you came to the right gal! I'm more than honored to be your ice cream binge eating partner! Come on." She clicked her tongue and the dogs stood up, then with a free arm, she linked it with Leon's. "Let me just drop these boys off and then the festivities can begin."

He let her lead him across the grass.

"Sora."

"Hmm?"

"Why are you wearing a hip harness?" he lightly scolded.

"Well, I got the idea when what's his face - that one actor guy with the ring and super short and hairy feet, you know who? - did it." She shrugged. "Seemed like a good idea."

"...Frodo?"

"That's the guy!" She grinned. "Now I know you've seen that movie!...Or read the books. Or both, I guess. That's possible. Or even if you just read the cliffnotes or wikipedia I'm sure you could have gotten it too. Geez, there's a lot of options nowadays, huh? Kind of ridiculous now that I think about it. Oh! Or some friend told you and..."

He shook his head as she rambled on.

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AN: So I don't know when the next update will be, which is why I was trying to post like crazy since it's been long overdue.

Thanks for the support ladies and gents! I hope you're excited about what's to come as I am! :3


	9. Chapter 9

AN: Your eyes do not deceive you, this is a new chapter. :3 Enjoy!

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As Leon followed Sora through the aisle, he couldn't help but wonder.

"Do we truly need all of this?"

She glanced back at the small cart he was pushing. "Yeah we do. Actually," she tugged at a corner of the cart to make Leon turn. "We need sprinkles to go with that ice cream. Oo and some cherries too." She quickly turned around and halted. Leon abruptly stopped the cart so he wouldn't bump into her. "Do you like bananas? We can make a banana split."

He eyed the three tubs of ice cream - all different flavors of course and not necessarily matching flavors - the cones, caramel syrup, chocolate syrup, strawberry syrup, nuts, marshmallows, Nutella, and finally, a bag of mixed chocolate chips. How could they need anything more to this...monstrosity?

"...No bananas."

"You don't like them?"

He opened his mouth to say that he did, but then shut it. If he said yes, she'd march right over to get some. "Not today." She was going to spend enough money with what they had already. There was no need to add any more.

"You have certain days when you like bananas?" She laughed as she turned forward. "You're so weird."

"Says the woman that puts dog leashes around her hip."

She snorted in her laughter. His wife Layla would rather lose her voice box than make a sound that sounded so much like a dirty farm animal. Quite honestly, he would rather be deaf than have to put up with someone who always made that kind of noise. A tiny frown appeared on his face. Why wasn't he annoyed by her snorting laughter? He should be counting the seconds he had left in her presence.

"That wicked tongue of yours is back!"

As soon as she said it, she bit her tongue. Ooo she should not have referenced that. She said that when she was first hitting on him...but it was completely harmless now. She didn't say it with any kind of innuendo this time or making some kind of 'come hither' face. She totally meant it as a harmless joke. She risked looking back at him to see his reaction and then quickly turned back. There was a frown on his face - a teeny tiny one, but a frown was a frown.

Nervous, she tucked some hair behind her ear. "Erm...sorry."

"About what?"

She turned back around, again making him quickly stop in his tracks. "What I said upset you."

"It did not."

"Yeah it did."

He shook his head. "I believe I would know if you upset me."

"And I believe," she walked around the cart to him, jumping up a little to poke at his forehead, "I know a frowny face when I see it."

She strutted back down the aisle. He rubbed the spot between his brows. First it was the cheek pinching and now this...Why was it never gentle?

"I was thinking of something else," he called out to her as she stopped by the sprinkles.

"Ah!"

He quickly wheeled over to her. "What's the matter?"

"There's no more sprinkles!"

He eyed the shelves up and then down. "There are many sprinkles."

"Not the little star ones!" She pointed to the blank space. "Those are the only _real_ sprinkles!"

"We'll get some other ones."

"No." She sighed and dejectedly walked over to the jars of cherries. "We'll have to do sprinkles another time."

"...My apologies."

He wasn't sure why he was offering her condolences for sprinkles but it made the smile come back to her face.

"Come on, let's get to eating!"

He jerked as she spun the cart around towards the front of the store. It was difficult to keep up with someone who changes their mood so quickly. He supposed he should be grateful that her mood brightened. He was not one for comforting.

He could barely keep it together with his own issues.

"So here's what I was thinking: We'll eat this stuff at the beach or the park - one tub for you, one for me and the third we'll share - and then depending on where we go, we can either jump in the ocean or go run around the playground and - excuse me, we're in this line."

The lady that had cut Sora off boredly looked up from her phone and then back down.

"I'm pregnant."

Leon and Sora both blinked at that. He wasn't certain what to say to that. Sora, on the other hand...

"So just 'cause you're preggers you can cut?" Sora put her hands on her hips. "I don't think so. My friend's depressed. People can die from depression. This is a life or death situation and yet he's being a decent human being and waiting his turn to pay!"

"Sora - "

"And what pregnant mom buys beer and condoms if there's a bun in the oven? You letting the baby daddy screw some other chick while you're - " Sora's eyes widened as she saw at least ten familiar containers, "You took all the star sprinkles! No one needs that many!"

"Just cool it, alright? I have less stuff than you." The lady's cell rang out. She turned her back on Sora to take a call. "Hey babe." Pause. "Yeah I know but some scrawny skank is harping over sprinkles."

Sora's mouth fell open but she quickly recovered. "I'll show you 'scrawny' you gluttonous witch!"

Leon's eyes widened as Sora lunged for the woman. "Sora!"

Faster than he thought was possible, he rounded the cart and hauled her off the lady. Unfortunately for the woman, Sora had gotten a hold of a fistful of hair. The woman shrieked louder as Leon lifted Sora away from her, but the hold on her hair making her follow Sora. The only reason why Sora ended up letting go of the woman's hair was because of a sudden -but not necessarily unwanted- insight. With his arm around her waist and her back against his chest, she realized something that she had not noticed before.

Techie he may be, but he was _built_.

Leon, on the other end of this, had a similar insight about his old, petite classmate. They had been children when they knew each other, puberty just on the horizon of their young lives. She had been 'scrawny', but it was nothing that was not normal for her age. Now though, with her so close and his arm around her, he realized that she was in no way, shape, or form 'scrawny.' She had a figure, which he had in truth seen before, but now completely realizing just how much of a shape she had.

However thin she had been in the past, she was certainly - unmistakably - a woman.

He immediately put her on her feet. She quickly put some space in between, keeping her back to him to keep him from seeing the red that had bloomed on her face. Both realizations occurred in a couple of seconds, but they had been enough.

"You stupid bitch!" the woman hollered.

"Is there a problem here?" the store manager tentatively approached the screaming woman.

"No," Leon answered for all of them, "we were just leaving."

Sora blinked as he grabbed her arm. "But our ice cream - "

"Leave it."

His tone left no room for arguments.

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He was quiet as he drove.

She bit her lip. She never heard him upset before, not even when they were snot nosed kids. She got him angry when she was supposed to be making him feel better. She fisted her shorts. Why did she have such a short temper? She never really cared before about her temperament. If she was happy, she was happy. If she was upset, she threw things. And if she was sad...

She felt her eyes sting. Roughly, she rubbed them. Now was not the time to be a crybaby.

"...Are you crying?"

"No," she stubbornly turned her head out of his view. "Just allergies."

He gave her a dubious look out of the corner of his eye and then sighed to himself. "You shouldn't take things to heart."

"How else am I supposed to take things?" she muttered.

"Words are only words until you give them power."

"You get that out of Shakespeare?" she snipped before she could control herself.

"No," he slowly responded. "You need not take that tone with me."

Her brow ticked. "I'm not a toddler so don't patronize me."

He sharply pulled to the side, making her squeak.

"This is a red zone," she protested.

He parked the car anyways. "What went wrong today?"

"Huh?"

"At the dog park you were happy. Now you're not. What happened?"

She frowned. "I should be asking you that. You came looking for me buddy and in the middle of the workday too. You playing hooky or something?" Her eyes suddenly widened. "Oh no...Did you get fired? Is that why you're depressed?"

"I am not depressed. Merely...discontent at the moment."

"Really now? And how long have you been feeling 'discontent'?"

He did not answer. She crossed her arms.

"That sounds like depression to me. Well, I'm sure with your skills you can find another job or -"

"I did not get fired."

"Then what's wrong?"

"..."

"Leon...talk to me."

"I will," he murmured. "I simply just..."

What could he say? His wife was taking some time away from him and he didn't know if she was coming back? Or how about the sinking suspicion that Layla had been - and most likely still is - in contact with his boss, Yuri Killian? He had no clear information to suggest that something was going on, but the fact that Yuri's office was decorated in the style of Layla's model offices coupled with the smug way Yuri carried himself, Leon could only suspect what was going on. It might be pure paranoia. Merely a husband's fear of his wife finding someone else, of the idea that someone you committed to was no longer interested nor invested in the relationship, that the whole year they spent together connected to each other was not as stable as he had originally thought.

Whatever the case, Leon had bad feelings.

"I don't know what to do," was his quiet response.

Whatever bristling feelings Sora may have still held settled over. He looked so lost. She was not used to seeing him like this. Even as a kid he seemed to radiate self assurance and conviction in himself. Her hand lifted up to touch his hand, but she thought better of it.

"I get lost too sometimes," she murmured back.

They shared a look. So much was shown on their faces, yet so little. She looked away first, sighing as she rubbed her opposite arm. It seemed like all she did was tread in stormy waters lately. She pursed her lips. Being pensive was not her style, action was.

"How much time do you have?"

"Pardon?"

"You took time off right?"

"Well yes I -"

She completely turned towards him, folding her leg underneath her. "We need to have an adventure."

"...I do not follow."

"All this moping around isn't doing any good." She grinned widely. "So let's play."

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AN: More talky than action, but they need some heart to heart stuff. 3

I really want to write more for this story it's just my work hours. X/ But thank you so much for the lovely reviews! I get excited seeing that people love these versions of Sora and Leon too!


	10. Chapter 10

AN: I redid this at least twice. It's kind of wacky, but...here it is! XD

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Leon looked around the neighborhood she had directed him to.

It looked pretty ordinary, except for the couple of shady characters mulling about the tiny ice cream shop nearby.

"This is where adventure is?"

"Nope," she chirruped as she got out of the car.

He quickly followed her lest she get lost. For good measure he locked and beeped his car. "If this isn't adventure, then – "

"This is a vital pit stop," she opened the door for him, "The place where we need to get the energy to launch our fantastic evening!"

He peered inside the dimly lit shop. He had only gone in ice cream shop three times as a boy, but he distinctly recalled the place being well lit and the walls bright colors.

This place seemed…suspicious.

"Hi!" Sora walked in without any signs of distrust, "We'd like two double scoops of –"

Leon pulled her to the side. "Sora. What is this place?"

"…An ice cream shop…" She thought it was obvious, but maybe he needed the simple things pointed out to him. "We still need our frozen treats."

"Yes, I know that, however, it doesn't look correct."

She tilted her head. "What do you mean? There's ice cream right there and the guy over the counter looks nice. What's wrong?"

The colors. The vibe. The customer passed out in the corner with his half eaten cone melting in his hand. Don't even get him started on how dirty the floor was.

"We don't know this place."

"Well I do. And it's legit." She smiled and patted his hand. "I'll take care of this order, ok? Don't worry about it!"

Against his better judgment, he let her walk back over to the counter.

"Hi again!"

"…Hi."

"So! We would like two scoops of the House Special."

The guy behind the counter idly nodded. "You want extra boost?"

"Sure!"

He scooped out the orders, adding in some green-ish syrup on them. She took the cones with a smile and handed one to Leon.

"That'll be $35.99."

Leon quirked a brow. That was pricy for ice cream.

"Hang on a sec," she reached into her pocket and then looked in the other one. "Uh…I thought I had it with me but – ooooh crap!" She kept her wallet at home when she dog walked. Sheepishly, she looked at Leon. "Do you mind paying? I don't have my wallet."

He slowly blinked. So at the grocery store he would have ended up paying for all of that. He didn't mind paying, but he wondered how it was possible for her to grab a cartful of things without remembering that she had no money on her.

She was more absentminded than he had thought.

He pulled out some bills. The guy gave him some bills back, but Leon did not take the penny.

"Here's your cent."

Leon shook his head. "Keep it."

The guy shrugged. Made no difference to him.

The duo walked out of the shop. "O-k," she continued walking down the street, "let's see how this is!" She counted her fingers down. "Get ready to lick!"

He sighed, but took an experimental lick. The ice cream itself wasn't bad, but the green stuff…He took another lick. It was sweet but also leafy tasting. Did she take them to some new age ice cream shop? She took a long lick of it, swallowed, and then scrunched her nose.

"What is this? It tastes like sweet grass with a bit of a tang to it." She licked again. "I don't think I like it."

Leon paused in licking. "…I thought you said you knew this place."

"I looked it up on Yelp."

"That is not knowing a place."

"It's practically the same thing."

He pinched the bridge of his nose. "The Internet is not a reliable source."

She shrugged but continued licking it.

"You don't have to finish it if you do not approve of it." He certainly wasn't planning on finishing it especially since she had never been here before. Who knew what awful chemicals and additives were in the green concoction?

"We paid for this crap. It'll be a waste of money."

He took the cone from her hand and then tossed them into the nearest trash can.

"Hey!"

He ignored her cry. "Let me see that website."

"Grouch," she muttered, but pulled out her phone. "Ok, let me find it again…Here."

He took her phone and stared hard at the background image of the place's official website.

"There's a marijuana plant on the site."

"What? No there isn't." She looked at the screen. "It's red, so it's the maple leaf for Canada."

He stayed quiet for a good 10 seconds. Then, "…Your ignorance is appalling." He stiffly gave her the phone back. He had enough of her nonsense, however well-meaning it had been. "I'm going home."

At least at home he wasn't ingesting foreign drugs from a young woman that couldn't identify 'dangerous' even if it had a sign written right across it. He honestly didn't need this. He could do without her company or Layla's. He had been a loner growing up; he was certain that it wouldn't be that difficult for him to go back to those ways.

He turned around to leave.

"Leon, don't go."

He ignored Sora, though more for the fact that he found the ground very unstable at the moment. He put his hands out to steady himself.

"Please don't leave," she quickly reached out to him, "I – doh…whoa…" Her center of gravity was suddenly off. "Whaat the heellll…?" she groaned as she plopped down on the sidewalk. "Why I feelll so weirrrd?"

He leaned against something. "The green syrup." He blinked hard. "Get off the ground. It's filthy."

She rapidly blinked as she stared at him. Then, she burst out in giggles. "You're on a dancing trashcan."

He immediately stepped away from it. Though, the loss of stability made him stumble and join her on the floor. He slowly turned his head towards her. Was it just him or was her hair brighter than usual? He picked up some hair and squinted as he turned it about. It was definitely glowing.

"Your hair's soft."

She looked down at his hand with big eyes then back up at him. "Really…?"

He slowly nodded and then tilted his head. Her eyes were different. The center irises looked like they were a brighter color than the darker brown around the edge. He liked it. He liked it a lot. He watched her giggle to herself as his fingers moved under her eye.

"Your eyes…"

Even in her state, she felt the anticipation. "What about 'em?"

He frowned as the irises changed size. "…They're strange. Fluctuating. Pupils growing larger and -" he paused, some tidbit of knowledge coming into his mind.

Pupils react to light. Less light means wider pupils for the ability to see in poor lighting. However, pupils fluctuate based on emotions as well. Pupils enlarge to see more – whether to spot the danger or to better take in what they like. He did not think her pupils…she…was reacting because of poor lighting or fear.

"But do you like 'em?"

He parted his lips to answer, but something floated in front of him, derailing his thoughts. He squinted. It looked like a tiny feather that was now morphing into some sort of boat cloud. He shook his head hard. At least one of them still needed to be sane.

"You don't?" came her small reply.

"Don't what?"

She sniffed a little. "Like my eyes."

"Why wouldn't I?" spilled from his mouth before he could think about what to say.

A goofy smile appeared. "I like yours too, Leo."

"Leon."

"Isn't that what I said?"

God help him. He was never getting drugs again.

"I need to wash my hands."

She giggled again. "Yeah, and probably your mouth." She leaned up towards him, her eyes lidded. "I can help with that."

A cop car pulled up before Leon could answer her.

"Something wrong with you two?"

"Nope officer. Just reeeelly tireed."

The officer peered at them over his sunglasses. "Mm hmm…I'm gonna need to see some id."

"What if a raccoon took it?"

Leon and the officer looked at her. How was that supposed to be a sane statement? The officer stepped out of the car. Leon felt some dread. He'd never been arrested before. He wasn't going to start today. He took a long breath in and then took Sora's arm. With his exhale, he stood up, bringing Sora with him.

"We're fine, officer."

Next to him, Sora had a ridiculous smile on as she gazed at the world with a baby's curiosity. Leon didn't see it, but the officer could. "Mm hm. That's for me to determine." He pulled out his notepad. "What's my name?"

Leon withheld the urge to squint as he looked at the nametag. The letters didn't want to stay still.

"Officer…Jer..ry."

"One down. Two to go." Jerry scribbled something down. "What's the capital of Washington?"

Leon felt himself relax. "Olympia." He could name all the states' capitals in his sleep.

"Very nice. Most people say D.C. Ok. Last one. Name a Brittney Spears song."

"…Who?"

"The '90s pop singer. Long blonde hair and then shaved it all off."

Blonde hair made him think of Layla. He was half tempted to laugh at the thought of her being bald. She'd never dare to shave her head, but it was a humorous thought.

"…I have no idea."

Sora giggled as she leaned heavily on Leon's arm. "Ops, I did it again."

"And that makes three," Jerry smiled. "You guys seem alright then. I'll leave you be."

The officer got in his car and then drove off.

"Thank you."

Sora owlishly blinked. "For what?"

"…You answered the pop song question." Did she really forget what she just said eight seconds ago? Maybe that officer shouldn't have left right away.

Her eyes narrowed in deep concentration. She had been looking at the blue dog across the street and then the squirrel stealing a gum ball from a talking tree. When in all of that watching did she say something that would help them get out of trouble with…her eyes widened. She laughed loudly. Oh she did say something. She had a bad thought and then spoke aloud.

"I wasn't answering a question."

Leon frowned. "Then what did you do again?"

"Not telling." She grinned as she put her forefinger to her lips. "Secret."

He sighed to himself. Of course.

"We should leave."

She nodded her head, but couldn't stop doing the motion. Leon placed his hand under her jaw to still her. That taken care of, he started to walk to his car. He had initially grabbed her arm, but it was her that was holding it now and keeping the link. It was a lot more difficult for him to walk without swaying.

He was never, ever coming back to this ice cream shop.

"…I don't think I should drive."

"I can!"

Leon gave her a dubious look. " _Neither_ of us can drive." He looked around and then started walking down the street. "I think I see a park. We'll stay there until our heads clear." He didn't want to be seen in this state by the public or worse, a co-worker. The possible mortification overruled his distaste of open grassy spaces.

They were never cleaned enough for his preferences.

"Ooo wait I'm hungry!" She jerked his arm suddenly, nearly wrenching it out of its socket. "Let's eat somewhere!" She pulled him close to a door.

"A barber shop?"

"If they have food!"

He didn't trust anything from around here. "We should rest first."

She pursed her lips. "Food first."

"No."

"Yesss…"

" _No._ We are in no shape to be eating public."

"…Eating food?"

"…" Dear Lord, now he was messing up his speech. "Yes, food."

She perked up. "Food!"

"No."

"No? But you said yes just now."

"I wasn't agreeing to eating. I was agreeing to your food question."

"You're agreeing again!"

"Not to food."

"…You're making my brain hurt."

He closed his eyes for five seconds and then pulled out his phone.

"Hello, I need a taxi to drop us up."

"Pick us up," she corrected as she smiled widely.

"…Pardon. Pick us up."

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AN: Next chapter might be shorter.


	11. Chapter 11

AN: This one came out longer than I thought. Lucky you! ;P

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The first dinner with Layla had been a disaster.

The table was much too small to accommodate both of their long legs, but it was too late to switch to a booth. Then, their server got their orders mixed up with some other couple's and their actual food was cold when the right order was brought over.

 _"What a pair we make," Layla softly murmured with a hint of humor in her voice._

Hearing her say that made him relax. He had been afraid that this first outing would affect her opinion of him. But the faint smile hidden along the edges of her lips made him warmer than any other woman had been capable of making him feel. He had liked the feeling. He had liked it a lot.

"We shouldn't have come here," he quietly murmured.

"What?" Sora looked up from the fancy leather menu. "You want hare?"

The dimly lit restaurant with the lightly perfumed candles made for a gentle seductive atmosphere. He looked around them at the other couples dressed in fine dinner attire and jewelry and then he looked back at Sora and him, her in her black shorts and his coat covering her tank and he in his wrinkly work clothes. Why did he bring her here again? He couldn't recall what sensible reason would justify this.

"They don't sell wild bunnies here, Leon."

"I don't want hare."

She tilted her head. "Then why did you ask about hare?"

"I didn't -" he quietly sighed. "Never mind. My mistake."

"...Hey, it's ok." She reached out for his hand and grasped it. "It's just the drugs still going through your system."

The chatter around them quieted for a moment.

Leon wondered if it would be terribly rude to leave for the bathroom and then not come back to the table. At all. Then, though, he dismissed the idea. He had brought her to this upscale restaurant. It was his fault for doing so. His head dropped down a little. The reservation had been for Layla, not Sora.

He slipped his hand out from under hers. "Perhaps."

She quietly withdrew her hand and looked back down at the menu. She stayed silent for almost a whole minute when she frowned. He seemed to be doing worse here. Her mouth thinned. After the grocery and ice cream mess ups, dinner should not be going this way.

It was time for action.

She stood up quickly, not caring how unladylike she looked as she got out of her seat and walked over to his chair. "This place isn't for us." She extended her hand out for his. "Let's go."

He looked at her silently. Then, he took her hand.

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All sorts of feelings shot through her, making her tilt her head back. "Oh _Kami_ yess..." She didn't know why she didn't do this before.

Leon's face was slightly red. She hadn't made those sounds when they ate mac and cheese together, so why now?

"Mmmm!" She took another large bite out of her juicy burger. "Yesss...this is exactly what I wanted." She closed her eyes. "It's like heaven in food form. And the bacon...uh! It just gets me..."

"Is it necessary to make those sounds?"

She half opened her eyes. " _Kami_ Leon, yes!"

His hands felt sweaty. He put his burger down to wipe them. She groaned. He cleared his throat and then picked up his drink to get rid of the dry feeling. If they weren't already outside, he would have suggested that they relocate. She took a last chomp of her burger, making him sigh in relief. Then, though, she mewled as she bit into her fry.

It was time for some distracting conversation.

"You haven't told me why you were upset."

"Mmuh?"

"After the store, you were very quiet. Did that woman's 'scrawny' comment harm you?"

"Pu-lease. That fake pregger couldn't hurt Big Foot."

"Then…Did I hurt you?"

She stopped slurping her soda. "Of course not." She idly played with her straw. "I just…I don't know. It was upsetting, that's all. But it's no biggie."

"You were crying."

"My eyes were leaking because of allergies, I told you."

"Sora."

She bit the inside of her cheek. She was about to give him more sass. She didn't want to though. He didn't deserve such things. She sighed and looked out into the empty street.

"I don't like seeing you sad."

"…I'm not sad."

"You are," she firmly declared, "you have the same lost look on your face like when –"

He felt his heart stop for a couple of seconds. He had nearly forgotten that she had been out in the school hallway when he had gotten the news of the train wreck.

"When what?"

"…You know what."

"Finish it," he coldly bit out. "If you're going to bring it up, finish what you started."

"Leon, I'm _not_ finishing it."

Silence.

He looked down at his unfinished burger. "…Is that the real reason why you remember me? As the boy with the lost look?" Compared to the 'OCD Freak' title, it was worse. Much worse.

He didn't want her pity.

"Of course not," she snapped out. "You don't have to be a bastard about it. I mean, I was practically in lo – v… uhhh you, um." Her initial anger was switching into embarrassment. "I uh, I was two years younger and you never bullied me or was an ass about me skipping two grades. So, you know, I didn't – don't- think badly of you or anything like that. It's just -" She fiddled with her hair but then stopped when she realized that her fingers had ketchup on them. "Oh, damn it!"

She always had to make a fool out of herself, didn't she?

She heard his chair as he scooted closer. "Move your hand."

She dropped her fretting hands quickly. Quietly, gently, he wiped the ketchup out of her hair. She swallowed hard when the back of his hand briefly brushed her neck.

"You, uh, carry wet wipes with you?"

"Every day."

She let out a small smile. "Lucky me."

He inclined his head in agreement.

"…I only tried to cheat off your test once. But then I kind of felt bad, doing that to someone I…looked up to." She stared at the face of the boy she once knew, admiring the man that was now before her. "That's why I don't like seeing you sad."

"…I admired your courage. Being in a classroom with children two years your senior…" he shook his head. "It must not have been easy."

She lightly shrugged. "Whoever said life was going to be a nice rainbow walk? It was 'get through it' or 'crumble.' And I wasn't about to crumble like a soggy cookie, you know?"

He slowly nodded his head. Although he wouldn't use that comparison, it was true. Why let your troubles break you, especially if you've survived far worse before? He wouldn't dare crumble to something like this. If he could live with the news of his family's train accident in 5th grade, he could survive this recent loss.

He just hoped he had the strength to follow through with it.

"It's not enough to just survive though."

"Pardon?"

"Everyone needs some fun from time to time or else you'll just be this walking block of nothing. No history, no friends, no memories…" She shuddered at the thought. "Might as well be an empty puppet."

Who knew she could be so philosophical?

"Your hair is clean."

"Thanks! You're the bestest!"

She leaned over to kiss his cheek, but his head had turned to address her. She halted herself, her hands tightly gripping his forearms to keep her from doing something impermissible. Her heart thudded loudly, her lips dangerously close to the forbidden area. She felt her arms shake; she couldn't push herself away.

It was Leon that turned his head. She relaxed as his cheek was presented to her.

She pecked his cheek.

Then, though, before she pulled away completely, his head turned a bit, making her graze half of his lips. She quickly pushed herself into her chair. She hadn't meant to do that. She really hadn't.

…Did he?

"Let's go."

She blinked up at him as he was now standing up. "Where to?" He shrugged evenly. She didn't know that was humanly possible. "Well, it is getting late and you have work tomorrow so – "

"I do not work tomorrow."

"Huh? So it's a two day hooky?"

"Vacation time. For two weeks."

Her mouth morphed into a face splitting smile. "Oh we're definitely getting wasted tonight."

"No."

"Yesss…"

"Do you not understand the meaning of _no_?"

She gave him a wicked grin. "It secretly means 'hell yes.'"

He looked up to the sky. He knew he only himself to blame for having sought her out, but…

 _Why?_

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AN: I will try to get another chapter in, but it will most likely not be so lengthy.


	12. Chapter 12

AN: Hopefully this chapter makes up for the long wait. :3

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Leon looked around his new surroundings.

The pub was a lot cleaner than he thought it would be, but it still wasn't up to his standards of cleaniness. Not that any one place has met all of his ideal settings. However, he knew not to expect the ideal from strangers.

A shot glass was loudly placed in front of him.

"Enjoy." Sora then slipped herself into the booth next to him, her own mixed drink still in her hand. The colored sunset slushed over the side as she moved. "Whoopsy!"

She then proceeded to lick the drink off of her hand. He cringed. Given all the places they've been to in this impossibly long day, he knew her hands were dirty. He immediately fished out his wet wipes.

"Don't lick it off."

He carefully put her tall glass down on the table and then started wiping her hand.

"Hmm heh heh…" She goofily smiled. "You remind me of my nanny. Or 'manny' I guess for a male nanny." She tilted her head. "Is that a real word?"

"I highly doubt it."

"It should be." With her free hand she reached out for her drink.

He lightly tapped her hand in reprimand. "I need to clean the glass."

"Definitely a manny."

He shook his head. "Your nanny did a terrible job."

"Oh the most horrid," she amiably agreed. "Especially when she hit on my dad."

He paused in folding the used wipe. "Pardon?"

She shrugged. "Wasn't the first person to do it and sadly not the worst of things." Hands free, she picked up her drink. "I caught him with my piano teacher when I was like, 10 or 12. Right on the piano too. Guess they thought I would take longer coming home from school or something 'cause that screw place had to have been the noisiest of spots." She shuddered a little. "The notes were so sour…"

"My condolences."

"Eh. Don't feel too bad. The lady looked younger than she was." She snorted a little in her drink as she giggled. "I caught her putting her hearing aid in one time. I never told my dad." She zoned out looking at some random picture on the wall. "Guess divorce does really weird things to you."

"…I do not know what to say."

She looked back at him. "You don't always have to respond. It's ok." She pushed the shot closer to him. "I like my drink, so now we need to see about yours."

"I believe I said I would not be drinking."

She playfully bit her straw. "You also said we wouldn't go out to eat."

"I'm the designated driver."

"With what car?"

"I can't go home drunk."

That made her let go of the straw. Just talking with him so plainly and freely she didn't think to think. She frowned a little. Her long term memory – and frankly her short term too – might be crap with details, but she did recall him telling her he was on vacation. So if he was married...

"Why aren't you with your wife?"

His sharp eyes were on her. "Pardon?"

"Well, you said you're on vacation, so…" she paused as she considered something. "Oh no. Is your wife really sick? Is that why you're on vacation? But then why are you in a pub with me when she's sick?" She frowned and smacked his arm. "Leon, go home and take care of your sick wife instead of drowning your depression!"

He placed both hands over his face. He was relieved she hadn't guessed that his wife left him. But this whole scenario she concocted on her own…

He rumbled out a laugh.

She blinked at the sound. Did he finally break under the pressure? "Leon?" She put a hand on his shaking form. "Hey, it's ok." She rubbed his shoulder. "You don't have to hide your crying. Men cry too. I know. In fact, my first boyfriend would cry watching _The Notebook_ and all the pet adoption ads on tv – you know with the doggies looking at you with sad, big eyes through the cold, metal bars of their cages..." She twisted her mouth a little. "Though, he turned out to be gay. But that still counts right? Ooh wait! My guy cousin would cry over his lego if somebody ruined the buildings he was -"

"-t crying."

"What? I can't hear with your hands in the way."

He lifted his head, the corners of his eyes crinkled in mirth. "I am not crying." He let out a short laugh and then quieted down. "My wife is not sick. She is…away. My vacation did not coincide with her departure." He sighed as his humor waned completely. "I had spoken without thinking."

She was quiet. Something about the way he was saying this was tickling her brain.

' _Mommy, where's daddy?'_

 _'_ _Daddy's…away. Work needs him.' Her mother faked a smile. 'But he'll be here Sunday for your birthday.'_

Away, Leon said? She looked down at her glass. Strange how her memories seemed to be detailed on the stuff she'd rather not remember.

Stupid brain.

Her grin returned as she lifted up his shot. "If you're not needed elsewhere…"

He stared at it and then at her. He really did not have a reason for not indulging in a drink. After the days of uncertainty, he could use a drink amongst company, he supposed. It was better to drink with people than alone, was it not?

Instead of taking the glass, he looked at her expectantly. "Then what are you waiting for?"

"That's the spirit!" Her grin widened. "Open wide, hotshot!"

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Sora hadn't a clue what time it was.

All she knew was that there were a bunch of empty glasses on their table and most of the lights of the pub were out. And for some reason she was laughing for a ridiculously long time right now.

"Oh my gar-sshh…why..haha..was.. !..fun-nnnyy! HAH!"

Leon was still trying to figure it out because he was still grinning at whatever in hell it had been. But her laughter was keeping the humor so now he didn't know what the origin of the joke had been. Some black haired woman was coming to their table. He vaguely recalled that she had been the one singing earlier.

"You jokers know you're like the only ones here, right?"

Sora snorted in her laugh. "Yeah yeah. We're degene-rates."

"Just as long as you know." She shrugged her jacket on and then left.

"That was rude," Leon murmured.

"Usually. But May keeps a clean area so I can't really complain."

"Roommate?"

"Housemate."

"Ah." He looked down at their glasses. "I should pay the bill."

"No need. I put it on The Tab."

"You have a running charge?"

"Nope. But May does."

"…That is harsh."

"Hey, she's the one that brings her newest boytoy home and screws them until 3 in the morning, knowing we got thin walls." She shook her head. "The newest one holds the record of until 6 am. Honestly, I don't know how she can walk straight the next day."

"…"

"…Too awkward?"

"A bit," he acknowledged.

"I wasn't ee-quipped with a censor," she said as an apology. "But I am getting betterer about mentioning a bunch of details."

"I appreciate the effort."

He looked around the place. They really were one of the few people still here. His eyes lingered on the half lit stage, the light making the piano keys glow in their whiteness.

"There's a piano."

She had been resting her head on his arm, about to enter a light nap when his voice made her snort and prop her head up.

"Whaz that?"

He looked down at her. "I want to hear you play."

She groaned a little. "It's been ages…doubt I remember."

"…Does it make you think of your teacher?"

"Not really. Just…lost interest in it."

He looked at the piano. He couldn't get the imaginary image of her sitting on the bench out of his head for some reason. "Will you please try?"

"…Ok."

She made to scoot out of the bench, but her right leg was stuck. When in the world did she decide to drape her leg over his?

"Erm, sorry about that."

"About what?"

"...Nothing." She quickly slid out, and then had to grab the back of the booth to steady herself. "Stupid sea legs."

She wobbled to the piano, Leon following behind. She slowly slid herself onto the piano bench. She squinted at the piano composition still open. Maybe she could just play this. She tried a few keys, the sour sound making her cringe.

" _Kami_." She just got a flashback of her dad screwing the teacher.

"Ok…" So maybe she shouldn't try reading music while drunk. She clenched her fingers a few times in the hopes of stretching them. "Maybe if I just…don't think about it." Like muscle memory. That could work, right? If you don't ride a bike for a long time you can pick it up again.

"Just," she tapped a key, "don't think."

Her fingers pressed a few more. Then, a couple of keys at the same time to make a familiar sound. Her slow pace picked up just slightly, but not a lot. Her fingers remembered that the beginning of this was slow to begin with.

He stood behind her, watching her slender fingers stroke the keys. She was getting more comfortable with the instrument, her head unconsciously dipping down and to the side as she felt the nostalgic melody. She looked…different, but in a good sort of way.

" _Moonlight Sonata_ ," he murmured as she continued to play.

She halted abruptly. Her fingers curled into her palms and stayed there. "Yeah." Her fingers uncurled to put the cover over the keys.

His hand stopped the cover from coming down. She let him open it back up.

"Could you show me?"

"To play?"

He looked down at the keys. "Just a couple of notes." He lightly pressed a key, the pressure only letting out a faint sound. "I had been curious about the piano when I was younger but didn't get around to playing it."

"Sure. Um. Do you want to sit with me or you sit down and I hover behind?"

"Given our height difference," he drawled in slight humor, "I should hover behind."

"Ahaha…yeah." She probably wouldn't even reach the keys if the other way around. "Ok, so to start just…I don't know…Put your hands over mine and press when you feel the key sink down…I guess?"

"That should work."

She started out slow so he could follow. She swallowed a little when he inched closer. She could feel him – clothes, heat, muscle - even when he breathed in and then out in a steady rhythm of life. And his hands…they were bigger, she had felt that before, but seeing his hands and hers right in front of her…The fingers were lean and long, his nails clean – as if she expected a germaphobe to have dirty hands – and trimmed evenly, but not looking feminine.

She liked his hands.

She repeated the same notes a couple of times until she started noticing that he was pressing the keys before she did. He was getting it. She turned her head a little to praise him, but she ended up just smiling. He looked so focused in what he was doing, his brows furrowed in concentration and his eyes intensely looking at the keys.

It was cute.

"Let's try a new set of notes." She could feel his chin nod on top of her head. She giggled a little. After a couple seconds more of them playing, she wondered about something he said. "You're picking this up pretty fast." She pressed a couple of keys together, feeling his fingers follow. "So why didn't you try the piano earlier?"

He didn't answer for a moment, their hands still moving slowly as they made music. The way they were playing felt strange. But not a bad sort of strange. Just new. Layla never could fit entirely in his embrace. She was just as tall as he was, if not shy a couple of inches. He…liked being able to fully embrace someone. He sniffed a little. He could smell something tangy from Sora's hair. He leaned down a little more without realizing it.

"…Fear," he murmured, his voice just over her ear, "of the unknown."

Her finger hit the wrong key, misleading him as he pressed down on it as well. She looked back at him. He looked back at her, his face closer than she had thought he'd be. An impulse entered her mind. She leaned up to him. When he leaned down, her eyes widened, realizing what was going to happen. Fleetingly, she recalled him turning his head when she had pecked his cheek. She had questioned whether he had done that on purpose or not. Right now, she was inclined to think that it might not have been an accident. Her eyes half closed. Her fingers curled over the keys as their lips connected.

The sour notes immediately had her thinking: _Dad having old lady sex._

She shuddered involuntarily, disconnecting from Leon. It was like a damned Pavlovian response now. Stupid, horny dad. Stupid, horny teacher.

"Did," Leon halted as his mind tried to comprehend what just happened, "Did we just…"

She was no longer thinking about the horny people in her past. Her face was starting to burn. _Oh shiiiiiit…_ She quickly turned back around, her heart thudding hard.

Stupid, drunken her.

"Well." She cleared her throat. "I think that's enough for tonight."

She slipped her hands out from under his and slid the cover over the keys. He quickly moved his hands out of the way. She scooted to the end of the bench but was stopped by his presence.

"I apologize. I…" he floundered for words, "did not mean to make you uncomfortable."

She looked down at his shoes. So clean. So proper. "You didn't make me uncomfortable."

"I believe I did," he lightly frowned. "Is that not why the lesson ended?"

"Leon, you're not listening," she sighed in exasperation. "I _wasn't_ uncomfortable. That's the problem!"

He was quiet. Just the sounds of the staff cleaning the back could faintly be heard.

They were supposed to be friends. But she wasn't doing a good job of keeping her thoughts in that category. And she most certainly wasn't supposed to tell him that she was struggling with only being his friend. She groaned out loud, putting her face in her hands. She wanted to just hide herself in the piano and not come out again.

He was trying to be sensible. Responsible, like he always is. But…

"You weren't uncomfortable."

She shook her head, but still kept her burning face covered with her hands.

"You liked the kiss," he slowly murmured.

"…I'm sorry," was her pitiful response.

His fingers grazed the back of her hands. She inhaled sharply, the touch making her head pop out of her hands. His forefingers traced the curves of her cheeks. The sensible part of him seemed to be asleep. Yet he could find nothing wrong with that. He liked her red cheeks and the warmth bloomed from the red – and probably all the alcohol. He liked her parted lips. He liked her dreamy eyes.

He really liked the softness of her mouth.

Someone drunkenly whistled and hooted. Leon broke out of his trance. Sora rapidly blinked and then stared at him owlishly.

"We should go."

They got off the stage and Leon paused by their booth to pick up his coat.

Walking outside, she shoved her hands into her pockets. She wasn't really cold. It was more to keep her hands behaved because by the way he had looked at her earlier, she was sorely tempted to-to…do things. Several things. Many, several things that she probably shouldn't.

She needed to fix this.

"Hey about earlier…You know how people do stupid things when drunk, so uh, we can just chalk that up as our stupid drunk thing and then vamoosh! Not think about it again."

He slowly blinked. "I suppose so. If that's what you want."

"…Yeah. I think so." Pause. "Well, good night."

"Good night."

She started walking down the street. She peered over her shoulder. He was not walking or calling a cab.

"You forget where you live?"

He looked over at her instead of the street. "No. I just…" he softly sighed. "Don't want to go home."

She should have just kept on walking. She really should have.

"You, uh, wanna crash at my place?"

He looked at her long. His eyes, a little droopy because of the drinks, still had some sharpness.

"If I do," he slowly murmured, "I will not forget."

"Oh, _Kami_ ," she whispered.

Why would he tell her something like that? She gripped her hair. How in the hell were they supposed to stay friends? And why does it have to be only up to her? She set her mouth in a firm line. Hell no. She was done with this sort of wishy washy crap. She stomped over to him but stopped a couple of feet in front.

"I offered because I really don't want to forget." She put her hands on her hips. "So what's your decision?"

He looked up at the overhanging streetlamp. "My wife isn't away. She left me." He looked back at her. "But I have a feeling you already knew that."

The somber look on her face told him he guessed right.

"I think…" he stepped closer, stopping only until they were barely touching, "that I want to move on." He brushed her bangs aside. "I'd still remember earlier, even if you told me not to."

"Leon…"

He leaned down again. She leaned up to kiss him.

Then, suddenly, he put a bunch of weight on the kiss. "Mmm?!" His lips slid off of her, his forehead hitting her shoulder. She stuck her arms out as his body fell against her. She grunted as she half caught him, his legs bent awkwardly against the street. "What the hell Leon?!"

No response.

"Oh crap." She dug through her back pocket with one hand. "Nnn.." he started sliding out of her hold. "Ok. This isn't working." She plopped down on the sidewalk and put his upper half as much on her lap as she could. "Good thing you're not awake."

He'd probably have a panic attack if he woke up on the sidewalk.

She pulled out her phone and dialed.

"911? Yeah, the guy I'm with passed out. What the hell should I do?"

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AN: So much fun with these two, right? XD


	13. Chapter 13

AN: Happy New Year! I'm glad to see that people liked my Christmas gift: the long chapter 12. :3

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A faint beeping sound half awoke Leon.

He tried to groan, but the sound wouldn't come out. Just as well. His head felt heavy, he highly doubted he wanted to hear another sound other than the beeping and whatever was making that aggravating snorting sound. The latter sound was a cross between a wounded grizzly bear and a kid with asthma.

He told his eyes to open. They did not. Surprise surprise. Then, a sharp stinging in his left arm had him wide awake, his eyes immediately opening and a grunted painful sound rumbling out of his throat. The steady beeping sped up a little with his alert state.

"What do you think you're doing?"

The kid-bear snorting abruptly cut off. "Mhuh..?" Sora looked around, seeing Leon's nurse in the doorway. "What? I'm sleeping."

"You're getting the I.V. out of his arm!"

Sora quickly looked over at Leon. Her feet had been propped on the bed, one foot accidentally twisted in the I.V. tubing. "Aw shit!" She leaned over and rapidly untangled her foot. He winced a little as she pulled on the tube too much. She cringed. "Sorry!"

"Stop it." The nurse smacked her hands away. "You're making it worse."

Sora pouted a little, but said nothing. She was right, but damned if she was going to tell the older woman that. As the nurse painlessly unwound her foot from the tubing, Sora stretched her arms above her head. She didn't mind staying with Leon this long, but the least the hospital could do was offer comfy chairs. The nurse practically shoved her foot off the bed with a glare.

"Keep your feet off of the patient's bed."

Sora knew she did wrong, but sheesh. It wasn't like she purposely wanted to cause Leon pain. "I'll take that under advisement," she faked smiled.

The nurse gave her a flat look. "I'm sure." She looked at Leon's medical white board. "You're due for your medicine. I'll return."

"Witch," Sora muttered under her breath.

"Sora," came Leon's raspy voice.

She straightened up in her chair. "What is it Leon? You in pain? Oh! Or maybe you need water?" She reached over to the pitcher and started pouring into the cup.

"My hands..."

"Do they hurt?"

He shook his head. "Clean them, please."

"What?"

"Public piano...not clean."

She half grinned. He was in the hospital and the first thing he could think of was the unclean piano they had played on. She'd expect nothing less from him. "Hang on a sec. Let me find the wipes." She put the cup of water down and went over to the bag with his clothes. "They're in your coat pocket right?"

He nodded his head.

She found them with a "ahah!" and went back to his bedside. She picked up his hand, being careful of his I.V. tubing. As she wiped his fingers, a light blush started to appear on her cheeks. Drunk she may have been, but she still remembered last night and his marvelous hands over hers. She tilted her head a little. Or was it the night before? She really had no idea how long they've been in the hospital. After calling 911 and getting into the ambulance, she couldn't find her phone. She moved onto the next hand, stealing a glance up at his face. Her eyes drifted to his mouth.

Did he remember that night?

He remembered the piano, but what about what he said when they were outside of the pub?

Her face burned a little more. She so hoped he did. But sadly, it would be her dumb, awful luck that he would have been too drunk to recall the happenings of that night. She looked back down at his hand and sighed. She should probably wait to ask. For now, she should tell him where they were and what the doc said about what happened. Yes, that is the adult thing to do.

"You told me about your wife and then we kissed."

"What?"

"We kissed twice," she blurted out. "Though I don't know if you'd remember the second time. At first I thought you were being really passionate adding so much weight to the kiss, but it was just that you blacked out." So much for waiting to tell him this. Oh well. "You were going to come home with me and I was going to really pounce on you like a wild cat in heat, but, well, we ended up at the hospital instead getting your stomach pumped." She scrunched up the dirty wet wipe and threw in the direction of the trashcan by the door. She missed, but merely shrugged. She'll get it later. "I guess the marijuana ice cream combined with all that alcohol didn't really sit well with you. It was a possible allergic reaction, but the doc can't be too sure. So just pumping your belly and giving you safer drugs was the safest route."

He blinked once, twice...

"A wild cat in heat?"

She nodded much calmer than she thought she would. "Is that comparison too forward?"

"Was it what you were going to do?"

She thought about it for a moment. "Yeah, pretty much."

"Then it is fine."

She fiddled with her fingers a little. Then, went over to the table with his cup of water. "You probably need this." She opened the wrapper around the straw and made sure to bend it a lot. "Here."

He sipped slowly as she held the cup.

"So..." she hesitated for a moment and then went for it. What the hell. Why not? "Do you remember what I told you?"

He paused in drinking. "Most of it, I believe. What you said sounds familiar."

"Do you stand by it?"

"What part?"

"...The part about wanting to move on."

He stared at her silently. She couldn't really handle silence.

"I ask as a friend, sure, 'cause what friend wouldn't want to see their friend happy? I guess a backstabber wouldn't but I'm not a backstabber - at least as far as I know. What I'm trying to say," she flushed down to her neck, "is that I like you. A whole lot. And I certainly am your friend, but let's face it, what friend says they want to pounce on you like a wild cat? Well, maybe one of those 'friends with benefits' thingies, but that's not what I'm talking about or even wanting to attempt to do, cause that quite frankly sounds like a bunch of crap or indecisive high schooler poo or -"

"Sora."

She immediately clamped her mouth shut. He grunted a little as he tried to sit up more. She made to help, but he held a hand up. Once he settled, he looked at her.

"I would be honored," he rumbled out, a faint light in his tired eyes, "if you would join me for dinner."

She couldn't contain herself. "Yes!" She lunged over the bed, her arms around his neck. "Of course I would!"

He grunted a little. "I.V."

"Sorry!" She altered her position and then smiled back at him. "I want to kiss you."

Without waiting for a reply, she did just that. He was wide eyed for a second at the abruptness, but then his hands both cradled her head. She mewled a little, moving herself closer until she was completely on the bed. She boldly parted her lips, momentarily forgetting about his cleaniness and germs thing, but just as she recalled and put her tongue back inside, she felt his lips part. She melted there and then as their tongues brushed. _Kami,_ was she going to find out how wicked that tongue exactly is? She shivered hard. She so hoped so.

A loud alarming beeping sounded out in the room, bringing the nurse back in.

"What in the hell do you think you're doing?!"

Sora pulled away to look at the EKG machine. "Oh shit!"

His heart rate had spiked pretty high. Quickly she scooted off the bed, but in her haste, she forgot to look out for the tubing. Leon hissed as the I.V. was ripped out of his arm.

"Sorry! I am _so_ sorry Leon!"

"You need to leave _right now_ young lady!"

"Hey I'm freaking 23, not some high school freshman!"

"I only call you as you act, _young lady."_

"You stupid- take that back hag!"

 _"Hag?!_ Why I never-!"

"Could someone put my I.V. back in?"

"Oh _Kami_ Leon! Sorry! Yeah just a sec."

"Oh dear me, yes of course!"

Another nurse came in. "What's the fuss? Can I help y- ooop!"

The nurse slipped on the wet wipe. The older nurse sent Sora a dirty look.

"Why are you assuming it was me? Maybe the janitor missed it, you think of that?"

Leon shook his head. For a moment, he wondered if he was in a circus, not the hospital.

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AN: Thank you all for the fantastic reviews! And we are moving on with the development! How exciting! We'll see if Leon regrets it later. XD


	14. Chapter 14

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Not for the first time that day did Leon wonder about his sanity.

Because surely, he had not asked out a woman while sitting in a hospital bed after having his stomach pumped. He must have looked terribly messy as well as smelled. Every morning he showered and he was certain he had not been bathed while he was passed out - not that he wanted a stranger _touching_ him. He only stayed in the hospital overnight but he could feel his body itching with uncleanliness.

He certainly would not have accepted a dinner date had it been the reverse.

Pouring himself some coffee while he waited on the phone, he sighed yet again. Had he been too hasty, too delirious, when he asked Sora out? Was it too soon? He put the mug to his lips, pausing as the smooth ceramic sat on his bottom lip. Her lips had been surprisingly smooth and silky against his own. And her mouth...Lord, that warm mouth. It was a rarity for him to share an open mouthed kiss for obvious reasons, but he had done so before when the idea did not repulse him so much. Those occasions were his feelings overriding his logic - even he had moments of abandon - though in much, much smaller doses. He was aware that it happened and it really was not practical to try to stop every impulse. After all, there were times when he felt incline to impulse.

" _K to K Human Resources. How may I help you today?"_

He put his mug down a little reluctantly. "This is Leon Oswald calling. I wanted to call and request some sick -"

 _"Oh Mr. Oswald! Don't you worry about a thing. Hospital visits are completely understandable for missing work. I've already put in the sick time."_

He frowned. His two weeks of vacation technically start Monday, so he needed to call in for the next couple of days. However...

"How did you know about the hospital?"

 _"Your wife told us."_

He stared unblinkingly at the wall and did not even breathe. The woman that abandoned him, that left him in limbo, not knowing whether she was coming back at all?

"I do not think my wife would have called you."

 _"She didn't. We called your cell phone yesterday to see about your absence and she picked up, clarifying the situation."_ The woman lightly laughed. _"Mrs. Oswald has an excellent sense of humor."_

"...Yes." Pause. "So the sick time - "

 _"Is already taken care of. Just relax at home Mr. Oswald."_

"Thank you."

He hung up and then dialed another number. He waited for her to pick up. A Japanese song was playing in his living room. He frowned and got up to investigate. He finally found the tune coming from his coat pocket and he quirked a brow. Why did he have her phone? But it meant now that he had a legitimate reason for going to see her before their dinner tonight.

He hung up the phone.

ACS

Tim's Terrific Donuts was typically busy in the mornings.

Today was no exception. Back and forth Sora worked, humming a tone to keep her from thinking about the line. In the back, Ken boxed some donuts every once in a while in between glazing and frying. Half an hour later, she was down to the last two customers.

"Sora!"

She turned around from boxing. "Thanks Ken!"

"Ok," she put the boxes on the counter with a little grunt, "so here's your two boxes, one glazed, the other mixed. And with the coupon that'll be...$10.99? No wait. Hang on..." she re-punched the numbers in the register. "It's even lower?" The stupid register was obviously broken. "Gimme a sec." She started drawing in the air, muttering to herself. She smiled once she got the answer. "16.99!"

The customer frowned. "That sounds too high."

"Well that's what it comes out to, especially with two boxes."

"This is ridiculous! I can't just trust that you did it right in your head!"

"Why not? I'm decent at math."

"A little ditz like you? I don't think so. I wanna talk to the manager."

"She is correct." Both turned their attention to Leon. Sora blinked at the notebook in his hand as he held it up. "If it is the coupon that was in the newspaper, then the total is $16.99."

Sora widely grinned. "See? It's right! And he works in an accounting company so he _knows_ numbers!"

The man squinted at the equations on Leon's notepad. Damned if he knew if it was done correctly.

"I'll let it go this time," the customer muttered as he pulled out his card.

Sora pulled out an old school card swiper, complete with old school register. She merrily swiped the card. "Please sign here."

The man snatched his donuts and left.

"Next!"

Ken peeked out to the front from the kitchen windowless opening. "The register broke again?"

"Mm. But it's ringing up this customer just fine." Sora shrugged. It wasn't the first time she had to deal with faulty equipment. "Thank you! Come again!"

Leon stepped up to the counter.

"Good morning stud."

He quirked a brow. _Stud?_ That had to be a first.

"Whatcha doing here?" She leaned forward, biting her bottom lip. "Impatient for tonight?"

He put her phone on the counter. "This was in my coat pocket."

Her face brightened. "Kiti-chan!" She rubbed her cheek against the phone. "I thought I lost you!"

"You named your phone?"

"Didn't you?"

He chose to let that question go. "Speaking of my phone...I called work and apparently my wife already requested sick time." He crossed his arms. "You don't happen to know anything about that," he leaned closer to her, keeping eye contact, "do you?"

"...Don't look at me like that."

"I'll look however I please."

"You won't," her voice lowered, "unless you want me sucking your face."

He slowly blinked. "I'm scolding you."

"I know," she breathed. "But it's turning me on."

He toyed with the idea of her jumping onto the counter and laying a sloppy, drawn out kiss on him. He was highly tempted to let her. He stepped back half a step and looked over at the display of muffins. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw her take a long breath out with her eyes closed.

"Your phone rang while you were sleeping and I picked it up without thinking." Sora was wiping down the counter. "I told the lady what happened but it was she that made the assumption that I was..." her cheeks tinted a little, "Mrs. Oswald." She cleared her throat. "But it got the job done, so..." she sheepishly shrugged. "I just went with it."

He hummed, picking up a muffin. "I'll take this to go."

"Ok." She rang him up.

He grabbed the little bag, letting his fingers brush hers. "I'll pick you up at 6:00."

She blushed, but smiled widely. "It's a date."

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At 6:05, Leon decided to wait inside.

He rang the doorbell, nearly cringing as it let out a dying squealing sound.

"Go around back!" Leon looked up at the second story, seeing a sleepy woman with messy orange haired pigtails poking out of a window. "The front door doesn't open anymore."

He didn't question it. It was Sora's place, after all.

The dried up grass crunched under his shoes as he walked to the backyard, however little it was. It was more of a tiny lot of dead grass and then a couple of steps leading to the back door. He knocked on the metal edge of the screen, his nose crinkling when a bunch of dust came out of it. This place needed some serious clean up. He was doubting his decision to wait inside rather than in his clean car.

The woman from early opened the wooden door, squinting out in the evening light.

"You Leon?"

He nodded.

"I'm - " a long yawn overcame her, "Mia."

"Pleasure."

She left the door open for him. "Sora's blow drying her hair." She yawned again, plopping herself on the couch. "Sorry, I've been crazy busy." She propped her falling head against her hand. "I work as a film script writer and editor."

Leon sat on the edge of the couch. There was a bra on the back cushion and he wasn't about to touch it.

"Truly? With which industry?"

She gave him a sleepy smile. "I doubt you heard it. We're a new indie group."

There was a loud clattering upstairs and some bickering burst out. Leon's brows rose as he caught some rather colorful insults.

"May and Sora bicker like cats and dogs." Her eyes started to droop. "But they actually do get along most of the time."

He didn't really understand how that could be, but he accepted it. There were many contradictions surrounding Sora.

"How many..." He let his question drift off.

Mia was now snoring on the couch.

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The Italian restaurant wasn't the classiest of places, but it was what he thought she'd be comfortable with.

"Sorry about making you wait."

He looked away from cleaning the water spots on his spoon to his date. There were many bold colors that made up her outfit: her tights were blue, her boots were red, her skirt was caramel brown, her blouse was lavender and her scarf a mixture of yellow, reds, and orange with little tassels around the edges. Strangely enough, it complemented her.

"Your friend Mia was accommodating."

"She was asleep when I came down."

He let out a tiny grin. She smiled at his joke, laughing shortly. Then, she took his hand, giving it a good squeeze.

"I really like you."

He felt his heart thud. Lord, how long had it been since someone told him that? He couldn't even recall if Layla had. He threaded their fingers, soaking in her rosy cheeks.

"I was impressed with your calculations."

"What calculations?"

"This morning in the donut shop." He tilted his head. "Is that why you skipped grades?"

She snorted in her cup. "That math was nothing." She chewed on some ice. "I was misplaced back then. Dad and I kept moving from place to place."

"...By two _whole_ grades?" He slowly shook his head. "I think you underestimate yourself."

The ice crunched loudly under her molars. "What's here," she looked down at herself and then back at him, "is what I am."

He stared at her unblinkingly. "You say that as if it is nothing."

"I'm just saying this," she calmly said, "so you understand what you're dealing with."

"Hm." He brought his other hand to rest on the back of her hand while keeping their fingers threaded. "I usually do not like touching." He looked up at her, his grey eyes smokier than typical. "So why am I touching you so much," he rumbled out in a low tone, "if you are nothing?"

Her mouth dried, despite the melting ice chunks.

"Because," he went on, his hand along the back of hers slowly trailing down her arm, "before me is a woman of great potential," his fingers paused at the edge of her quarter sleeve, following the cloth with a teasing touch, "not 'nothing'."

 _Kami._ Her heart was pounding harder than drums at a rock concert.

"You," she paused and then a half grin appeared on her face, "You say that to all the gals?"

"All the time," he said with a straight face.

She tried to look offended, but just ended up snickering. He, too, broke his facade, shaking his head.

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He walked her to the back door.

She hugged his arm closely, her fingers lightly teasing his palm. She could feel him shuddering a little. She turned her fingers, letting her nails lightly brush instead. His eyelids fluttered as he let out a sharp breath.

"You should go inside."

"I should." She let go of his arm, but grabbed his hands instead. "Are you ok going home?" She tiptoed up, lightly brushing their noses, "You can still crash here."

"...No, thank you." He was going to have to face his home eventually.

"A rain check then."

"You expect me to be scared of my own house again?"

"No," she stepped closer, letting their bodies touch, "You know what it's for."

Yes, he did.

She put her hand along his cheek, tilting it for a kiss. His lips parted without him realizing it, but he did not close it. That warm mouth again...Why was it that he didn't mind her germs so much? She softly mewled as their tongues tangled.

"Good night," he murmured, lightly kissing her lips.

Her face was flushed and she smiled at his sweetness. "Night."

She was on the steps when she suddenly turned around. "See you this weekend?"

"Not tomorrow?"

"May and I are going dancing tomorrow." She beamed at him. "You should join us!"

Dancing? In public? "...We shall see."

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AN: Daw... he doesn't mind her germs! XD


	15. Chapter 15

AN: I know, you've been waiting forever. I'm sorry about that, but life happens. :\ Nothing bad, just got super busy.

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Friday nights Leon usually stayed at home reading.

So it was no surprise that he didn't have anything other than work clothes in his closet. He pulled out another shirt, frowned and put it back in the closet. Maybe this was a sign. He most certainly didn't dance in public - hell, they didn't even have a couple's dance at the wedding reception. He highly doubted he was going to be okay at a night club with drunk strangers all around him.

He should tell her he couldn't make it.

Yes, that was the sensible thing to do. He nodded his head in agreement. Sora had invited him because he asked about Friday, so it wasn't like they had pre-planned this outing together. It was simply a polite invitation. She didn't truly expect him to join her and her housemate. He closed the closet. Just as he was picking up his phone to call her, a text came in.

 _Sora: we're leaving soon C u there? :3_

He stared at the text for quite a while. Then, his fingers started messaging back without him truly conscience of it.

 _Leon: Of course._

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Leon continued to grip the steering wheel.

He was already parked and perfectly aligned. But he just couldn't seem to get himself to let go of the wheel. Faint music thrummed from the clubs around. He knew which one it was, he knew she was waiting inside.

But it was a _club..._

Someone tapped on his window. He looked over to see a security guard.

"You alright in there buddy?"

He was tempted to say no, but merely nodded his head. The guard quirked a brow and then left when nothing else was said. Leon took a breath in for five seconds and then took another five to let it out.

His fingers finally left the steering wheel.

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 _'I'm all about that bass, about that bass, no trouble...'_

Sora took a quick look around while May and Mia continued to dance. It was over an hour since they arrived. She hoped Leon was able to find her, especially in this crowd.

"Get dancing girl! He's not coming!"

Sora turned to May who was popping her booty up.

'... _I've got that boom boom that all the boys chase_ _...'_

"He said he is!"

May twirled around as she rolled her eyes. She twisted her wrist in a circular motion, lightly hitting a button to make her watch light up. She tsked to herself.

"Didn't you invite someone too May?"

May scowled at Mia. "Mind your own business twerp."

"I'm older than you!"

"Don't remind me, granny."

Mia fumed. "It's only two years difference."

Sora pretty much ignored both of them as they bickered behind her. It just occurred to her that given how far in they are and how short she was, Leon probably wouldn't see her.

Instantly, she made her way to the front of the club.

The place was really filling up now. She shimmied her way through a thick group and then stumbled a little when her heel got caught on someone's strappy shoe.

"Watch it!"

"Shoot, sorry!"

She freed her foot and then hopped up from her crouched position. It was then that she spotted silver hair near the wall.

She smiled widely. "Leon!"

Leon frowned a little as he tried to look for Sora. He thought he heard his name.

' _My mama she told me don't worry about your size...'_

His eyes widened when he finally saw her coming over. Her dress was tight and a loud aqua color. She was a lot more curvy than her previous outfits had suggested.

 _'...Boys like a little more booty to hold at night...'_

How did her dress stay up without any straps? He could feel his face flush. Did he really just think that?

"You came!"

Despite the discomfort of the club, he couldn't help but let out a small smile.

"I did."

She leaned up, using his shoulder to hoist her up. She planted a sloppy kiss and then grabbed his hand. He blinked at the quick kiss and then stared at the thin crisscross straps along her back as she led them further in.

It was...sexy.

She suddenly turned around to face him. "Actually, we can stay around here."

He looked around them. They had stopped just before people would be bumping into them. He looked down at her, feeling appreciation for her consideration.

"You would rather be in the middle."

She lightly shrugged. "Most of the time. But this is good."

He felt her hands go along his neck. She started to dance. He told his body to follow, but all he could do was sway in place. He didn't know what to do with his hands. She saw his hands hanging in the air between them. She threaded their fingers and danced. His arms moved a little as she shimmied in front of him.

He liked seeing how lively she could be.

They danced like this for five songs. In the middle of the sixth, he got closer to her. She rolled herself against him and then turned so her back was to his chest. She shifted their hands, placing his along her stomach. Then, her hands went up and into his hair.

He liked the feeling of her up against him.

He started lowering his head to her bare shoulder. Her tan skin was glowing in the club lights, tempting him for a taste. He usually wasn't one for sucking on skin. But he felt moved to try it.

He was bumped into from behind.

He grunted as he held his ground lest he fall on his date. Sora eeped as she was jostled from the bump. With a frown, she poked her head around Leon.

"You could at least apologize!"

Leon felt his blood still as his boss Yuri said something snarky and then walked away with the blonde woman hanging around his neck. He understood Yuri not recognizing him. But she had seen him. He knew she did. She just walked away like they were strangers...

"Leon? You ok?"

As if from a dream, he snapped back into reality.

He looked around the place filled with sweaty, drunk strangers. He was withholding the urge to cover his ears from the obnoxiously loud music.

"I need the facilities."

"...Ok." She grabbed his hand. "I'll take you. This place is bigger than it looks."

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Leon stood in front of the sink, staring at the tiled wall.

He would rather get a urinary infection than use the restroom in this club. But he couldn't think of what else to do except to use the old 'restroom escape.' He used five paper towels to turn the sink on with the intention of wetting his face. But then, he found himself unable to dip his fingers into the running water.

He turned the water off.

He looked down at himself, his light blue work shirt buttoned up all the way and in a nice pair of slacks. He didn't belong here. He didn't know why he thought he could do this. He was a boring guy with a boring job and zero social skills. And then a cleanliness and order freak to top it all off. But that wasn't the worst of it.

He was comfortable with how he was.

That was the worst part.

Why else would Layla leave him for his boss, the known womanizer of the office? Yuri was charming, well off, and good looking in a way Leon could never try to be - not that he even wanted to be like Yuri - but obviously those were things that Layla had been looking for.

Why else would she turn away like they didn't know each other?

In that moment, he knew she wasn't coming back. It felt strange, for he had a feeling that would be the case already. But now, seeing how much happier she looked with someone else, it formed a heavy pit in his stomach.

Did he still want her? Is that what it was?

He bowed his head.

With a sigh, he tossed away his paper towels. He pushed the door open with his foot, grimacing at the return of the loud music. Not to his surprise, Sora was no longer waiting for him near by.

No, she was out on the dance floor with Ken.

Leon didn't know her co-worker was coming as well. Had she invited him as well or was this merely a coincidence? He stared as the new song progressed, changing her dancing into something...provocative. Her back was to Ken's chest, slowly lowering as her partner followed along.

 _'I knew you were...you were going to come to me...'_

Leon felt the heavy pit in his stomach grow. It was happening again. Someone else was replacing him. Could he never be enough for someone?

' _And here you are...But you better choose carefully...'_

She was so full of life, so much different than him.

 _'I'm capable of anything...'_ She caught Leon staring and kept his gaze as she lifted her hand, grazing her partner's leg. ' _...of anything, and everything...'_

So different...

' _Make me your Aphrodite...'_

She was staring at him in a way that made him forget there were people around them. The uncomfortable pit in his stomach lightened and morphed into something much more pleasurable.

' _Make me your one and only...'_

Somehow, Leon got in between them. It was quite possible that Ken stepped aside. He didn't care how it happened. All he cared was that she was running her hands down his chest and not someone else's, giving him thrills and looking up at him from beneath her lashes.

' _But don't...make me your enemy...'_ He shivered as she leaned forward and bit his neck harder than a love bite. '. _..your enemy...'_

She mewled sweetly as his lips brushed her shoulder. Her hands fisted his shirt tightly, wishing he had some buttons open so she could slip inside.

' _You wanna play with magic...Boy, you should know what you're falling for...'_

They were different people, but he could see something here between them.

' _Baby do you dare to do this? Cause I'm coming at you like a dark horse...'_

"Sora," he murmured in her ear. She shivered hard, making him say her name again so he could feel her react to him.

' _Are you ready for...a perfect storm...'_

"I wish to leave."

She looked at him with a light frown, not understanding. "Are you not enjoying..." Her words flitted away as he gazed at her, his grey eyes the smokiest she had ever seen. She was pleased to see that his head was still lowered. "Hmmm," she hummed, letting her lips play with his ear, "Rain check on my place."

' _cause what's in mind_...'

He didn't know his ears were that sensitive. "I know a place."

"Clean and tidy," her thigh went between his legs, "firmly grounded?"

He let out a long breath. Lord, she was bold. "Yes."

She leaned against him, smiling.

 _'There's no going back...'_

ACS

His house was what she expected.

Cleanly painted house, neat porch and orderly lawn. Her fingers had long since undone his cuff. As they walked up the driveway, her nails ran along the sensitive side of his arm. He shuddered a breath out.

"We're here."

"Safe and sound," she sang out.

Her breasts pressed against his arm as he opened the front door. He eyed her face. She was a lot calmer than he thought she would be. But he had a feeling it was only temporary, given how she was.

The door swung open.

A second later, she jumped up on him, making him quickly grab her lest she fell. He kissed her heatedly, which was a shock for both of them. She had thought she would have to be the one to initiate something; he had been prepared to take what she would do to him.

But then, he looked at her and the impulse to kiss came.

Her legs tightly wrapped around his torso as his mouth took and took, not relenting in his kiss. His fingers went through the thin crisscross straps along her back, feeling her skin heat up as he touched her.

"Mmm..." was her muffled sound of pleasure.

Along the way over to his house, he had worked out why Layla's dismissal had bothered him back at the club.

It wasn't that he wanted Layla still.

Her fingers made quick work of his shirt, finally able to slip inside to touch him. He felt hot as her hands slipped over and around him, restless in their exploration of him.

He realized that he wanted to be _wanted_.

Rejection never felt good. That's what that pit in his stomach had been. But it went away with the reminder that there was Sora. She came into his life with no warning, no invitations. He didn't like surprises. He abhorred the unpredictable. Yet he couldn't be upset about her.

She was the exception he never thought he could have.

He had been trying to navigate his living room without the lights on. He bumped into a table, breaking a vase. He didn't pause; it was Layla's vase after all. Sora's lips broke away from his and latched onto his shoulder.

"Ah..."

He didn't know about him sucking on skin, but he knew he liked her doing it to him. Her mouth was hot and moist, making him stiffen. His misstep halfway on the stairs hardly gave her pause. Somehow, she maneuvered his fall so she would be on top. Her mouth went along his collarbone as she grinded against him. He panted as he was awkwardly sprawled on the stairs, getting aroused faster than he had ever gotten before. He was no stranger to foreplay, but Layla's and his was 'practical'. It was short and just enough to arouse so they could have sex. But this...Sora was doing something else entirely.

He let out a curse in French as her tongue ran along the edge of his ear.

" _Kami_ ," she moaned above him, her hands running down her neck as the sound of his voice heated her up.

Watching as her hands went down her slender throat and over her chest was making his hands itchy for her. But he didn't reach out for her. He wanted to move to the bed. He didn't think he was going to last much longer and he most certainly didn't want to experience this night on the staircase. His eyes widened as she unzipped the dress and carelessly threw it behind her. He immediately grabbed her hands before she could reach his pants buckle.

"No."

Her eyes were so dark. He couldn't recall having a woman look at him with so much desire. "I thought this is what you were suggesting at the night club."

"Yes," he breathed out, "it was."

"So you changed your mind?" she looked behind her. "Hmm...you should have told me before I took off my dress."

He let out a half sigh, half chuckle. "You can keep the dress off." He sat up, making her arms come up to his neck. "I would like to do this where it is supposed to be done."

"Supposed to be?" She grinned wickedly at him. "Trysts happen anywhere."

She sucked on his lower lip before he could stop her. He groaned a little but found the strength to pull away.

"I want you on my bed, not my staircase."

" _Kami_ ," she whispered, putting her face against his neck, "it should be illegal for you to talk." Her lips started kissing up his throat. "I'm more than 'hot and bothered' now."

"Not here."

"Yes," she playfully murmured. "You can't wait anymore either."

"Yes I can." He inched them up another step.

She smiled into his neck. "Yes to stairs."

He gritted his teeth as she started rocking against him. "No."

"So no you can't wait? I knew you'd see the light."

Oh lord, that smart mouth of hers was turning him on when he was already highly aroused.

"No. To. Stairs."

She pulled away from his neck. "I always win our arguments."

"Not this time."

"Yes."

"No."

"Yesss," she pressed down harder.

He let out another curse.

* * *

Sora panted as she gripped the wooden bars at the top of the stairs.

They didn't make it to the bed nor did they linger on the stairs. They both lost that argument. But the carpet at the top of the stairs looked soft enough, so she supposed it was a win-win.

"1,2,3," he half whispered against her neck "1,2,3, 1,2,3..."

She moaned as his thrusts started getting faster. She was just glad he didn't start at ten but rather at five. Her legs tightened around his waist as she followed his count, finding it actually helpful. Who knew?

"1,2 1,2..."

Her hands moved to grip his shoulder blades tightly.

"1 1 1..."

"1 1 1," she mewled mindlessly with him as the thrusts got deeper.

He started to falter in his counting as her hips moved faster.

"1! 1!"

He groaned as his hands fisted on the carpet, letting her take over the counting.

Zero.

His mind was a wave of emotions as he released into her.

"Aah..." he gritted his teeth, " _Sora_."

She shattered beneath him, throwing his mind through another wave as she cried out his name. His arms couldn't keep himself propped up anymore. He panted as he lay on her. He couldn't recall having gone through that as strongly as he just did.

He felt her push his shoulder.

"I kind of can't breath."

He allowed himself to fall on his side. She breathed hard as she continued to lay on her back.

"Wow..."

He watched her breasts rise and fall. They looked soft. He hadn't touched them as much as he had wanted to.

"Eyes up here buddy."

He cleared his throat, a bit embarrassed to have been ogling her. She laughed when he gave her a sheepish look. She rolled onto her side, facing him. Her hand pushed his hair out of his face, tucking it behind his ear.

"I'm guessing you want to shower, right?"

He blinked at that. "Am I that predictable?"

"A little." Her forefinger ran along his bottom lip, "But that doesn't have to be a bad thing. Seriously though," she sighed and rolled onto her back, "I don't like going to sleep all sweaty."

"Ah."

From down the hall, he could hear the clock from his bedroom tick.

"...Leon?"

"Yes?"

"...I don't want to sleep yet."

He looked down at her, seeing her biting her bottom lip.

"Then we don't have to."

She lifted her arms up and waited for him to come. He came over her, resting back between her legs. They kissed softly, sensually, as tongues flicked and teased, his finally running along the roof of her mouth. She liked that wicked tongue of his. She liked it a lot. She ran her nails down his back, liking the way he shuddered against her. Layla's nails were always a short, practical length, so he hadn't know the pleasure before.

He really liked the sensation.

She pushed against him, tipping him back. He allowed himself to, liking the sight of her above him. She took his hands and placed them on her breasts. He moved over them, admiring their softness. She tilted her head back as she softly moaned. He was being very thorough in his exploration.

Soon enough, he was back inside her. He couldn't control his shivering as she languidly rode him. The unhurried pace was an unexpected pleasure, allowing him to really feel her. He liked being inside her. She was comforting and exciting at the same time.

He couldn't explain how those two words worked together, but they did.

Her breath was barely louder than a sigh. Her eyes wanted to close in bliss, but she wanted to see him. She could tell that he was going through a similar dilemma. She leaned over, her forearms on either side of his head.

"You can close your eyes. I won't be upset."

"But I -"

Her finger rested on his lips. "I'm going to too." Her eyes closed as she rocked a little harder. " _Leon. Kami..."_ her forehead rested heavily on his, "you make me feel so much..."

He stiffened more inside of her. "Sora..." His eyes closed involuntarily as she continued rocking. He felt his lips part in a long exhale. "I can feel you..."

Her body heat, her breath, her skin...He felt more aware of his sense of touch.

...No, more aware of her.

ACS

ACS

ACS

AN: So I don't see that many chapters left. I'm thinking maybe three at most. But more like two. Who knows though?

Sorry if Leon counting was too weird. The idea came to me and it wouldn't leave. XD

Songs in the club were 'All About that Bass' and 'Dark Horse.'


	16. Chapter 16

AN: Here's the next chapter! :D

ACS

ACS

ACS

It was 9:45 in the morning and Leon was almost done vacuuming.

He had a late start, to his defense. He really wasn't one to sleep in, but this morning he awoke at 8:52 am. His cleaning routine was disrupted, but alas, he couldn't find it in himself to be upset about it. He was upstairs now, vacuuming the staircase. However, when he got to the top of the stairs, he paused. He saw the memory of her last night, naked and smiling. He could almost hear her panting as he had thrusted into her.

He skipped that part of the carpet.

When he came close to the bedroom, he turned off the vacuum. He walked quietly to the doorway, slowly turning the knob. She was still asleep on his bed, lightly snoring. The sleep shirt he lent her was completely off one shoulder, only opening up more as she rolled over onto the side of the bed he had been sleeping. He watched as she buried her face into his pillow.

He softly closed the door.

* * *

"Hey."

Leon looked up from the laptop. Sora was languidly leaning against the entryway of the kitchen, wearing his bed sheet. She ran a hand through her hair, feeling sexy for half a second before her fingers got stuck in a tangle. She wrinkled her nose as she fought her fingers free. Darn hair was always getting tangles.

"Hello." He started typing again. "Where's the shirt I lent you?"

"Lost it." She walked over, smiling. "I missed you in bed." She hoisted herself on the table next to his laptop. "I thought we could be traditional this morning."

"It's afternoon."

She shifted her leg free from the sheet, putting her foot on his leg. "Then we have a lot of catching up to do."

His fingers paused along the key board upon feeling her foot slide down to his crotch. He breathed out softly as she lightly rubbed against him. He grabbed her ankle and pulled her foot away from the sensitive area. She was giving him an innocent look, her hands folded on her lap like a good girl. He felt himself stiffen a little.

"You need to eat. I left a plate of food over on the counter."

She half grinned. "And the rest is right here."

"I'm not on the menu."

She propped her chin against her knee, bringing her closer to his face. "Since when?"

"Since always."

She laughed a little. "It's so cute when you try to be the reasonable one."

"You're eating like a normal person," he reiterated, "with a plate and a fork."

"Ok."

He eyed her suspiciously as she hopped off to get her plate. It couldn't be that easy. She came over and placed her plate down near him. She shoved his laptop aside, making his brows raise up.

"Alley oop!"

She was now sitting where his laptop had been. She crossed her legs, the tanned limbs teasing him through the split in the sheet. She cut up the omelet and started eating it, licking her lips after every so bite. He knew he should have moved. Any rational man could see what she was doing, especially with the little moans she did as she chewed. Her leg slowly uncrossed, her foot sliding back down to his crotch, lazily moving up and down his growing arousal.

He liked what she was doing.

She wasn't even done with her last bite when she put the plate down. Her knees were along his legs as she straddled him, kissing him. She liked how fresh his mouth was, undoubtedly his toothpaste. She pressed against him lightly, just barely rubbing his arousal. He groaned loudly, his hands along her hips fisting the sheet hard before he kept her hips in place.

"You said you'd be traditional today."

"In the morning." She lightly bit his nose, "It's the afternoon."

"Not in the kit-"

"Not where, Leon?"

He heard the slyness in her voice. He had almost risen to her bait. He took a long breath in and then hoisted her up. She blinked as she was placed back on the table and then nearly laughed when he walked away. By how stiff his shoulders were, she took it his arousal was making it hard to walk. She gave him a couple seconds more before jumping off the table. He heard rapid footsteps behind him, turning around just in time to see her pounce on him. He stumbled a little, her sudden weight making him lose his balance. But it was the bed sheet that made him fall against the armrest of the couch. He quickly stuck an arm out, stabilizing him.

"Hm." Sora looked over his shoulder and then grinned. "The couch looks good."

His eyes widened as she grabbed his arousal.

They fell onto the couch.

* * *

She lightly sucked his neck as he felt her breasts.

"You're unstable," he murmured.

She smiled against his skin, pushing down hard. He groaned as he went deep inside her.

"So are you."

He couldn't think of a counter argument, seeing as he went along with her crazy schemes.

ACS

May eyed her housemate from the bedroom doorway.

"And she finally returns, nearly two days later."

Sora continued to shove clothes into her duffle bag. "I thought you'd be happy, seeing as I left the place free for you."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

Sora grabbed her favorite multicolored scarf. "You brought Ken back here last night."

"No I didn't, lame brain!"

"What? Really?"

May crossed her arms. "I don't sleep with every guy I meet!"

Sora rolled her eyes. It sure seemed like it.

"With Ken...I don't want to rush it."

Sora blinked at her normally loud housemate. "May?"

Her housemate snapped out of it. "So where you headed off to now?"

"I'm staying over at Leon's for the week." She zipped up the overstuffed duffle, only getting halfway. "We want to take advantage of his vacation time."

"And after that?"

Sora smiled. "We'll spend more time together."

May shook her head. "Has he mentioned anything about his situation?"

"He's switching his filing for divorce on Monday."

"Switching?"

"He said that he had originally filed for separation."

"Are you going with him?"

"Why?"

May huffed. "To make sure he switches!"

"Separation, divorce." Sora shrugged "What does it matter?"

"For starters, separation means they are still legally married, numbskull. There's an intention of trying to make it work, but they need some time apart."

"Oh." She lightly frowned. "I'm still not going." When May opened her mouth to retort, Sora quickly added, "He'll think I don't trust him if I go."

"He hooked up with you while he was still married."

"Legally, yes. But he likes me."

May turned around. "Don't say I didn't warn you."

Sora heaved her bag and walked out into the hallway. "Thanks for caring!"

"Just go, you little idiot."

Sora shook her head with a smile. May was always defensive after showing that she did have a soft spot.

ACS

Sora sat on the washing machine with the Sunday paper in hand.

Leon quietly took out laundry from the dryer and folded it. Sora's phone was propped up on the shelf, playing some instrumentals. He was amused by the fact that she was trying to find something he'd like, but the songs were definitely not the classics. They were most likely modern songs redone. But he appreciated the effort.

"Hmmm," she tapped the pencil against her cheek.

She reached out and felt his leg. He paused, not seeing her eyes half lidded like when she was seducing him.

"What's your trousers made out of?"

Then again, maybe she was trying a new approach. "Pardon?"

"The crossword for fourteen down is 'trouser fabric'."

She lifted the paper up for him to see. He took it and quirked a brow.

"Number 22 across is incorrect."

She pulled at a corner of the paper to look and then wrinkled her nose. "They didn't leave enough space for that one."

"Palm oil wasn't a weapon in the North Korean war. Napalm, on the other hand, was a sort of weapon." He handed the paper back. "I believe the first use was in WWII."

"That's what it was called!" she chirruped.

"It's still incorrect."

"But what about the trousers question?"

He lightly shrugged. "Your answers for the other questions going through it makes no sense."

"Drat." She looked for another question. "What a fist might represent...a knuckle sandwich?"

He took a look and shook his head. "It's only a four letter word."

"Gah, who can do these stupid things?...Buddy, only three letters...bro!"

"I do not think - "

"It fits! I got one!"

He nodded as he read it. "So it does."

"Oo! You might know this one! The first bishop of Paris."

"Why would I know that?"

"You're French."

"And you're Japanese," he dryly intoned. "So what's 36 across?"

"First outside visitors to Japan...how the heck should I know? I wasn't born back then."

"My point exactly."

"But you know things." Pause. "Hey, you know French..."

He put a hand along her forehead. "You don't feel warm."

"I'm not sick, silly. Something just popped in my head." She eyed his pile of laundry, seeing that he was folding the last piece. She leaned forward, putting the crossword down. "You ready for dinner?"

"What popped into your head?"

She smiled. "I was going to tell you later." Her hands slid over his shoulders. "But I could tell you now..." She leaned over to his ear, lightly nipping it. "Voulez-vous coucher avec moi ce soir?"

He shivered hard. "Your accent is good."

She was now nibbling his ear lobe. "I wanted to make sure I said it right." Her knee brushed his crotch. "Don't want you to misinterpret."

He softly groaned. "Why in the laundry room?"

"Everything's so clean in here," her hand started to blindly unbutton his shirt, "makes me feel a little dirty."

"Anything dirty makes me want to clean it."

She took in his husky tone, loving it. "Hmm." She pressed her lips against his. "Do you count as you clean too?"

"Yes." Pause. "Does it bother you?"

"Nope." She smiled wide. "You help me remember my numbers," her tongue brushed against the seam of his mouth, "and then forget them again."

"Sounds like you need constant practice."

"Once a day, at the very least."

Her hand was down his pants. He felt his eyes widen and then lowered.

"You are being very dirty."

"Guess that means I need a good scrub in the tub." She grinned at him. "Care to do the honors?"

He lifted her off of the washing machine. "Gladly."

* * *

Water was all over the floor, but he couldn't find it in myself to be upset.

Not with this vixen in his lap. The only clean thing about what they were doing were the presence of soap and water. He groaned as she continued rocking her hips fast, her mouth biting and sucking his neck like she wasn't going to get another chance. He shifted them suddenly, more water slushing over the side of the tub as he switched their positions. One arm cushioned her head along the lip of the tub while the other helped brace him.

"What number should I start with?" he murmured in her ear.

She shuddered against him, her arms tightly wrapping around his neck. "At least three."

He thrusted deeply. "1,2,1,2..."

" _Kami..._ yes..!"

"Is this what you do in your spare time, Leon?"

The couple froze. Leon's head shot up from Sora's face, seeing long blonde hair. She was dressed nice, like always, but not as sharp and buttoned up like she used to be. He felt his lips part a little in shock, the pleasure of sex ebbing with her presence.

"Layla."

She looked at the pair and then primly sniffed. "I'll wait in the living room."

* * *

Leon's hands trembled a little as he buttoned up his shirt.

Sora's hands came over to finish. "You don't have to be afraid of your ex."

"She's technically still my wife."

Sora paused in buttoning his shirt. "Do you still want her to be?"

"..."

 _"Leon."_

"I don't believe so."

She bit her bottom lip a little. "If you're not sure, then what are we? Screw buddies?"

"No." He brushed her cheek with the back of his fingers. "Of course not."

He then stepped away from her and shut his bedroom door.

* * *

It felt like ages since he had last seen her.

He didn't know what to think.

Layla had helped herself to some of his liquor and was calmly drinking a glass when he came down. Some papers were on the coffee table. He sat down and took them. He lightly frowned. It looked like a divorce contract of some sort, like he was thinking of. Except...

"This house does not belong to you."

"As your wife, it partly does."

He softly sighed. "I do not care about the car, but this house is the last thing I have from my uncle." The man had taken Leon in when no one else would. It was filled with memories, both good and bad. He could not bear to have it taken away from him. "You've never liked it."

"I never said I disliked it."

Leon scrutinized her. "What are you planning?"

"I will not be left with nothing."

Leon crossed his arms. "Your new boyfriend has more than enough."

"That is none of your concern."

"It should be, considering he is the reason you left."

"He was the catalyst," Layla corrected, "not the reason."

Leon sat back and stayed quiet for a while.

"Will you ever tell me what I did wrong?"

Layla's cool blue eyes regarded him. "It is not a matter of right or wrong. Not even enough." She stood up and smoothed her skirt. "I'll leave the papers here for you to consider. If we cannot agree, the court will have to decide."

"Don't bother. We will decide this in court," Leon coolly bit out.

"My lawyer will be contacting you."

"You mean Yuri's."

Layla said nothing, merely turning away.

* * *

"You've been staring at the ceiling since I went to the bathroom."

His eyes drifted over to Sora. She insisted in using his shirt to sleep in, despite having brought her own clothing.

"...I don't want to talk about it."

"Hmm." she rolled onto the bed. "Then don't."

His eyes half closed as she peppered his face. She languidly looked at him, her hand running through his hair. He turned towards her, putting an arm around her waist.

"...Do I satisfy you?"

She paused in kissing him. "What?"

"When we're together."

She blinked at him and then tittered against his neck. He pulled away a little. She lightly shook her head. "Leon." She looked him straight in the face. "I've moaned for you. Several times." She moved her mouth to his ear, lightly nipping it. "There are some things a gal can't fake."

"I appreciate the honesty." Pause. "But I don't mean solely the sex."

She looked back at his face. "This is a serious question." She put her hand under his shirt and rested her head on his shoulder. She sighed, putting a leg over his. "I'm happy with you." She nuzzled his shoulder. "You treat me nicer than anyone's ever treated me."

"That can't be true."

"Well, not including some friends. But romantically, yes."

"...Then they were fools."

She smiled warmly. "Let's talk some more."

"About what?"

"Life so far, your job, dreams, aspirations..." she closed her eyes. "What pet peeves you don't like..."

"This is very sudden."

She shrugged. "I wanna know more about you."

"You know most of it, if not all." He looked up at the ceiling. "I want to continue the piano."

She smiled widely.

"...I also want to plant a virus on my boss' computer."

"I can help with that."

He looked down at her face. "You know programming?"

"Eh, not really." She half opened her eyes. "But I know how to screw things." She grinned crookedly. "As you well know." He felt his face flush. She snuggled her face into his shoulder. "But we'll do that later."

He wasn't certain which she meant, but did not ask.

ACS

ACS

ACS

AN: Getting close to the end!

Thank you all for the wonderful reviews! 3 3 I'm glad Leon's counting went over pretty well. :P FYI, "Voulez-vous coucher avec moi ce soir?" taken from the song _Lady Marmalade_. I believe it means 'Do you want to sleep with me?' Which means our Sora is very naughty. lol.


	17. Chapter 17

ACS

ACS

ACS

 _"What's the baby doing in the big kid class?"_

 _Young Sora grunted as she was shoved onto the ground. She hadn't even stepped into the classroom yet._

 _"She's still wearing unicorn panties!" jeered another kid._

 _Embarrassed, Sora quickly pushed her uniform skirt back down. She really hated Jiro and his groupies. They never picked on people alone, following a wolf pack mentality. She stood up, only to be shoved back down. Her eyes watered with frustration. She hated that she scored so high on those tests. She'd still be in her old classroom with her friends if she hadn't. If being a genius earned her scorn, she didn't want the recognition._

 _"Go away."_

 _She blinked up at a kid with shoulder length silver hair. He was defending her?_

 _"Clean Freak Oswald with the Baby," laughed a girl with long pretty hair. "Maybe he'll change her diapers for her."_

 _Sora fisted her hands tightly. "Piss off."_

 _"W-What?"_

 _She stood up with her eyes fierce. "I said piss off, stupid! Or did you forget your hearing aid?"_

 _"You little -"_

 _"Teacher teacher," the girl with the pretty hair urgently waved over their home room teacher from the doorway. "Sora's cussing out people!"_

 _"Jiro shoved me!"_

 _"Did not!"_

 _Leon tried to move Sora away, but the little spitfire wouldn't let him. "You so did!"_

 _"Sora -"_

 _Jiro gave her the middle finger. She made to take a swing at him, but Leon caught her arm._

 _"Stop it," Leon calmly said. "You'll only make him more stupid."_

 _Despite the anger, Sora laughed. "I might permanently damage that pea brain of his."_

 _"Why you -!"_

 _"That's enough," the teacher finally came into the room. "The next person to speak will have detention!"_

 _The small crowd dissipated, but not without dirty looks._ _Sora plopped into her seat with a sigh. Darn that brat. He was always picking on her. She noticed Leon seated diagonally from her._

 _"Psst."_

 _He didn't turn around._

 _"Psssssssssssst!"_

 _Leon felt something light hit his back. He looked at the crumpled paper ball on the floor and then back up. Sora gave a little wave and then turned back to the front. He uncurled it slowly, trying to not make much noise. The OCD part of him wanted to cringe at all the crinkles, but his curiosity overruled his OCD._

 _'Thanks' was written on the paper._

ACS

Present time...

Sora was sucking on a lollipop as she typed away on his laptop.

He stared at the screen, frowning as she worked. "You've done this before?"

"A couple of times on accident. I had tried taking classes to be in IT. I was better at creating issues, not fixing them."

He looked at her curiously. "You wear many hats."

"Except the president's," was her cocky reply. "Ok, almost done here…"

He leaned over. "You changed the coding." But for the life of him, he didn't understand the logic of it, which didn't bold well, given that he was in IT.

"Look here."

"…I see, you switched this part, but kept the rest."

"Yup. Then just fiddle with this and that over here…" She hit enter with a grin. "Virus made!" She opened up the browser. "Which porno site did he go on before?"

He had been momentarily distracted when she pulled out the lollipop and gave it a long lick. He had felt that tongue against his skin before. He felt a shiver go up his spine and then realized it had been her hand up his shirt. She continued to lick the treat as her other hand languidly ran along his ribs.

How did he not feel her untuck his shirt?

"It was Foreign Exchange Throb site, filled with different type of races." He paused for a second, the feeling of her nails lightly brushing up his back more than distracting. "However, I only want to infect Yuri's computer."

"Mm mm." She popped the lollipop back into her mouth, removing her hand from under his shirt. He sighed quietly, a little disappointed she pulled away. They did have a computer to infect though. "You want to do the site directly. That way nothing is directly linked to you. I already covered up the IP address."

He considered that and then frowned, having miscalculated. "…This might not work."

"Why not?"

"He has Layla now."

She looked at his face. Ever since the ex came, she wondered. May's warning was still in her head. Forgetful she could be, she did actually listen to people. Whether she took people's advice into consideration was another issue.

"Porno people don't just stop in a couple of days." Sora propped her head, her elbow on her leg. "What's she like?"

"Layla?"

Sora slowly blinked, letting that be her silent answer.

"Why ask me now?"

"We're doing this because of her, ultimately." She brought her legs up onto the couch, angling herself so she was facing him. "Just made me wonder what kind of woman she is to make you want to plant a virus on her boy toy's computer."

He hadn't had to describe her before. He sat back on the couch.

"She is…collected. Sharp wit. Sharper tastes. Likes clean designs and a smart house. Doesn't take no for an answer, nor any insults about the people she cares about. Stickler about time. Insistent on healthy living and eating."

"And pretty." Her fingers went through his hair. "That why you love her?"

He had been looking at the opposite wall. He turned back to look at her.

"Loved," he corrected.

Sora gave him a small smile, but there was some emotion in it that made him frown. "You don't stop loving someone immediately." She saw him open his mouth to retort. She gently put her fingers against his lips, making him close them. "I'm not complaining nor am I asking you to make some half assed declaration of love to me. Just..I know. It's going to take some time."

She removed her hand from his lips. He stayed silent as she hacked into the website and embedded the virus in the site.

"And now, let's send him some spam…" She got into the mailing list and sent the link to everyone. Heck if she knew which email was his. It was probably some secret email address anyways. That's what they got for looking at porn. "Finished with flare!"

"Thank you."

She smiled brightly. "Anyone else needing some punishment?"

"No."

She got up from the couch, stretching nice and long. "Now that's done we can get on with our lives."

He stood up with her, pulling out her lollipop from her mouth with a wet sound. She blinked as he placed it on the wrapper on the coffee table. Her eyes widened as he cupped her face, slanting his mouth over hers. She softly mewled as she heartily kissed back, not hesitating to jump up and wrap her legs around his waist. Her hands gripped his shoulders tightly as their tongues tangled and brushed. He sat her on the coffee table, kneeling on the carpet as their mouths continued to give and take. She let out a sudden breath as she felt his hip press between her legs. She broke off the kiss with a throaty moan.

"We're doing this here?" Even as she questioned him, she was pressing back, trying to get more friction.

He tilted his head curiously. "Was it not you that said trysts happen anywhere?"

"That I did." She lightly panted as she rubbed harder against his hip. "I also said I'd screw your brains out."

"Ah. So it was a double entendre yesterday."

She grinned wickedly. "You had doubted?"

He softly groaned as her knee rubbed his crotch. "I was 98.5% certain that's what you meant."

"You're so quirky," she murmured into his neck as she sucked on it.

"Says the pot to the kettle," he chuckled.

Her shirt was off now. She was still working on undoing all the buttons of his shirt. Curse him for buttoning all the way. She felt him unclasping her bra, felt his warm fingers as he slid the straps off slowly, teasingly, letting the material brush against her already hyper sensitive skin.

"Forget this," she impatiently bit out.

She ripped his shirt open the rest of the way. She heard a couple of buttons skid across the coffee table, but she didn't care. What she did care about was her mouth finding his skin. She started as low as she could, her tongue tracing any and every line of his body it could find, slowly making her way higher. He groaned louder, forgetting about his ire with her for ripping his shirt open. The buttons could be replaced. The sensation of her hot, wet tongue tasting him, her lips caressing over the slight stings of her occasional bites…these could not.

He caught her mouth again, needing to taste her.

Her hands were hardly idle, unbuckling and sliding off his clothes. His pants and boxers stayed bundled halfway down his legs. He slid his hands under her skirt, tugging her underwear off. He left the skirt on, simply raising it up her hips.

She moaned into the kiss as he brushed his arousal against her, teasing her, gradually dipping inside her a little and then back out again. Slowly, but surely, he was picking up on her brand of foreplay. She buckled suddenly, her nails digging into his forearms, halting her caress of those muscled limbs as he quickly entered her more than she had been expecting.

"Ahh…" her lips broke away from his as her neck arched, "you're getting good at this."

He nuzzled her throat. "I have a supportive teacher."

She chuckled at that. "Teacher/Student huh?" Her teeth none too gently bit his jawline. "Didn't know you cared for role playing." She put her hands around his neck. "Then we need to switch positions."

He pushed in a little deeper, leaning against her. "I like where I am."

"Bad boy," she half moaned. She bit his ear hard in reprimand. "I have a new lesson to go over with you." She lightly kissed his ear. "But only good boys can learn it."

He hesitated for a moment. She smiled as he turned them around, him now leaning against the coffee table. She nibbled his ear a little as a reward, knowing how much he liked that.

"Angles are vital to learn," she murmured confidently. "We have what I consider to be 90 degrees…" her hips pushed straight into him, her voice straining a little, "also home base."

Her hands went on his shoulders, lifting herself which made him pull out a bit. He groaned as she dropped down, making him come back into her.

"Roughly 130 degrees."

Her feet planted on either side of him, using the edge of the coffee table to change her position a little. Both groaned as she fell down on him harder, bringing him deep inside her.

"160," she breathed out against his lips.

She pushed against his shoulders, making his upper half lie flat on the table. She lifted her hips high as she could and then swiftly, her hands gripping the table's edge, she had him enter her completely. He groaned as his head tipped back, feeling her tight grip all encompassing.

"180," she mewled, "teacher's favorite."

"Question," he huskily rumbled, his hands going around her waist to lift her up a little. "Is this," he let her drop down on him, adding a thrust of his own as he met her, causing him to hiss out the rest of his question, "not 90 degrees?"

"Kami," her forehead rested against his collarbone as the electric thrill still jolted her. "It's the other half of 90 degrees."

His breath started getting heavier as her hips started to create a rhythm. "If 90 degrees was before I laid down, then this is only half of the other 90."

She did a rolling of her hips that made them both moan.

"Depending on who you are basing it on," she panted, her hips going a little faster. "My position or yours?"

"Whom," he corrected, half out of breath. "We both started at the same position, so your lesson is still incor-"

Her mouth cut him off as she kissed him hotly. His hands went up her waist, feeling the goosebumps he was creating. His hands, predictably, went to her breasts. Her tongue dipped in and out of his mouth in time with her hips, making his already stiff arousal even harder. He rubbed her breasts roughly, mindlessly, as she continued on her mission to screw his brain out of his skull.

He didn't even have time to count.

She thrusted her hips faster, harder, trying to reach their end. She whimpered, her hands grabbing the table so hard her knuckles were white. They were so close, she knew they were. But she wasn't patient enough to get them there eventually. She wanted his mind blown _now._ She took a precious moment away from his mouth.

"Want extra credit?" She grabbed his hands, putting them on her hips. "Be teacher's aide."

"No."

Before she could whine, he flipped her onto her back.

"Full time faculty."

"Probationary, until you prove yourself."

He thrusted hard. "Done."

* * *

Her legs were still around his waist, keeping him securely inside of her as they rested on the coffee table. He had no intention of leaving her comforting warmth any time soon. His tongue kept brushing against hers, but much slower and less frantic.

"Mmm." She softly broke away from his mouth. "I didn't think you'd kiss like this."

His hand continued to caress her neck. "I didn't think anyone's mouth could feel as good as yours does."

She giggled softly, running her foot along his back. "Good." She kissed him again, her tongue going across his lips. " 'Cause I like it."

He deepened the kiss, feeling her nails press into his arm.

"Was it a cherry lollipop?"

"Tropical surprise." She sucked his bottom lip a little and then released it with a sudden gasp. "Oh crap."

"What's wrong?"

"The lollipop was on the coffee table."

"It probably rolled off."

"…It would have, if I wasn't already half into the gum part."

He pinched the bridge of his nose. Of course it had to be gum. It was probably going to be stuck in his carpet or – his eyes widened a little, sitting up suddenly.

"It's in my hair."

ACS

The theater was filled with the rumblings of the crowd talking.

Sora followed behind Leon as he located their seats. Mia's indie film was only in select theaters, so she was glad her friend was able to reserve tickets for them ahead of time. But really, Wednesday was a pretty random day for an opening night. May and Ken were already in the row, talking to each other. Ken's hand was touching May's. Sora smiled at the blooming relationship.

"Hey guys."

Ken quickly removed his hand. "Hey Sora."

May gave her a little glare for ruining the moment, but then frowned.

"What happened to Leon's hair?"

Sora sheepishly rubbed the back of her neck. Leon's once long silver hair was now shoulder length. He continued to watch the ad currently playing, still feeling irritated with the situation.

"I um, kind of cut too much off."

May eyed the shoulder length hair. "You don't kind of cut off freaking five feet of hair."

"Well, I kept cutting it unevenly, so I had to keep cutting to even it out…"

"Oh my freaking…you're so hopeless."

ACS

Leon left the bed dip but he did not look away from his book.

He felt her hand sneak under his pj pants, rubbing his calf. He moved his leg away from her reach. He heard her soft sigh.

"Leon."

He did not look away. She crawled up the bed, putting her hand along his arm.

"I'm really sorry about your hair."

He shrugged her hand off of him. Her mouth down turned.

"So you're just going to keep ignoring me for the rest of the week?"

Silence.

In a burst of anger, she grabbed the book out of his hands. He gave her a thin glare and then looked away from her. She felt something wilt inside of her.

"Kami Leon, you can't even look at me long enough to glare properly!"

"…"

She threw the book down on the ground and then grabbed her pillow. "Don't wait up."

The bedroom door slammed shut.

ACS

The next day she was alone in the house.

When she woke up on the couch, there was no note, no text message to explain where he was. His bed was neatly made, almost like he hadn't slept in it. If she hadn't seen him last night, she might have thought he hadn't. She felt angry at him and herself.

Him for his passive aggressiveness.

Her for being a little idiot.

* * *

Her day had been uneventful. Her night as well.

She had been sleeping on the couch when she felt someone carrying her a little jerky. Her eyes fluttered open, realizing that they were going up the stairs. She pushed at his shoulder.

"I'm not going to bed with you."

Leon paused, not releasing his hold on her. "I wasn't solely upset about my hair."

"Well hurray for you," she bit out. "Now let me go."

"Layla wants to take my house." He looked back down the way he came, reminiscing. "I cannot find a way to not lose it."

She stilled her struggling, hearing his tone. It sounded pretty empty.

"Leon?"

"I met with my lawyer. He said the only way to keep the property is to split it." He lightly shook his head. "I care about the house, not the value of the lot."

"Why can't you get all of it?"

"…it would delay the divorce process for longer than I can afford."

"I'm sorry," she whispered. With a bit of residual anger, she tugged his hair. "You're an ass when you're upset."

"One of my flaws," he murmured. "And I assure you, I have many."

She put her head against his chest. "I don't expect you to be flawless." Her eyes closed. "Just freaking text me where you are instead of disappearing all of a sudden."

"I will."

"Leon, we'll find a way to keep your house, ok?"

"We'll see." He brushed her cheek. "I apologize for ignoring you."

She opened her eyes, leaning into his touch. "Talk to me more. Please." She rubbed her cheek against his hand. "Then we won't waste time being upset instead of looking after one another."

"...I promise to make an effort."

He walked back up the staircase. She did not protest again.

* * *

He felt her lower back arch as she moved above him.

His breath came out heavy, his hands feeling her sensual motions as she continued to make love to him. She was like lukewarm water: fluid, smooth, comforting heat. He kissed her neck, kissed her shoulders. Her breast rubbed against his chest, causing both of them to sigh. She softly kissed him, still keeping her pace slow. His hands languidly ran over her chest, up her shoulders, her slender neck and into her soft hair. Nothing was hurried, they refused to be rushed.

She pulled away from his lips. "Make love to me."

He turned them over, keeping the pace slow. He looked down at her splayed red hair against his light colored sheets, her chest moving up and down as she breathed. Her eyes were lidded and dark, her lips parted in an eternal sigh of pleasure. He kissed her deeply, seductively, reaching to every part of her mouth. The pleasure of knowing that they were finally making love on his bed was greater than he had expected it to feel.

Her toes curled tightly, grabbing some of the sheet.

He trailed down to her neck. He liked kissing her there, aside from her lips of course. She fingered his shorter hair, twirling it around her fingers as she lifted her hips up to meet him. He wasn't counting out loud, a part of her missed that. She bit her lower lip as he thrusted particularly deep. He was following the rhythm of the moment. She hadn't thought he would be able to do that without her guiding him.

"Your hair was this short when we first met," she paused, angling her hips a little more. "Uhh...kami, yes..."

"In school?" he breathed out, trying to replicate the thrust that made her arch just now.

"Uhh!" Her eyes closed tightly as her back bent sharply. "Yes..!"

He kissed down her collarbone, repeating the thrust. "You remember me - " he groaned as she wrapped a leg around his waist, "from back then?"

"I always have," she panted, one hand staying in his hair and the other cupping his face. "I just suck with names." Her thumb brushed his cheek as she wrapped her other leg around his waist to join the other. "You were my hero."

He gripped the sheets as his thrusts stayed deep.

"I'm honored," he moaned, feeling her kiss his face fervently.

She melded their mouths together. She couldn't stay away from his lips too long.

* * *

She ran her fingers through his hair as he slept.

The locks were still a little damp from their lovemaking. It was the first time they didn't shower after sex, also the first time he was sleeping in the nude with her. She nuzzled his throat, placing an open mouthed kiss. She could taste the salt of his sweat. She did it again, whimpering softly. He shifted a little in his sleep, his arm around her waist pulling her closer. She closed her eyes. She wanted to stay with him forever.

If keeping this house will keep him happy, she was determined to do just that.

ACS

ACS

ACS

AN: Whew these two! Hot and then even hotter. XD

Poor Leon's hair though...

I'm thinking the next chapter will be the last. I'm personally excited because stories deserve endings and...I can then focus on finishing my other stories... :P Not that working on this hasn't been fun. I hope people enjoyed reading that flashback in the beginning with them in middle school.


	18. Chapter 18

AN: Last Chapter! :D

ACS

ACS

ACS

Leon was back at work.

After nearly a week, he was still not caught up in his emails, especially with new IT requests coming in every so hours. Every computer seemed to have an issue. His boss Yuri had a long term virus that was finally resolved - Leon had fought the urge to grin so hard, he was certain he had been scowling. Then, while he was away, his bonsai tree looked like someone put something heavy on it and tried to prop it up with a coffee stirrer tied to it.

But Leon was relaxed.

His fingers flowed over the keyboard as he diligently worked.

"Hey Oswald," his neighbor rolled out of his cubical, but did not approach Leon's, "My password's not working again."

Without batting an eye, Leon went in remotely and reset it. He didn't know how the imbecile kept mistyping his name. But that was not his issue and no cause to ruin his mood. His phone rang. He picked it up without looking to see who it was. Typically, he didn't receive phone calls. But he had one frequent caller, one admirer that he didn't want to miss. He cradled the phone between his head and shoulder as he continued to work.

"You're early."

Sora laughed a little on the phone. _"I can hang up and try again."_

"That is not necessary."

 _"Soo...were you able to undo my virus?"_

"Of course." He half grinned. "If I didn't know your mindset, it would have taken a month. I applaud your innate skills."

 _"Messing things up is my specialty."_ He heard some metallic groan from the other end of the phone, followed by some instrumentals. _"You ready to eat?"_

He clocked himself out. "Do I have a choice?"

 _"Not really. But I thought I'd try to make it seem like you did."_

"Cheeky."

 _"You know you like it."_ A ding sounded out, both over the phone and down the hall. _"Can you take an hour off for lunch?"_

He turned his chair in the direction of the hallway. "Why?"

He could see her now. He eyed her heeled short boots, the short purple skirt, and the off the shoulders white peasant blouse. Colorful bangles lightly jangled as she walked over. She paused, gave him a smile, and then covered the mouth piece of her cell phone, her lidded eyes looking straight at him as she explained why in a low tone of voice.

He let the shiver wrack his body before answering. "You do know everyone's phone calls are recorded, correct?"

 _"I'm just talking about lunch."_

"And OJ Simpson was at the wrong place at the wrong time," he dryly retorted back.

She leaned against the wall, her hip sensually cocked to the side. "So _you don't want lunch."_

"...I did not say that."

 _"Then I'll meet you by the car, lover boy."_

She flashed him a wide grin. With a wink, she ended the call, and then sauntered back down the hallway towards the elevator, making sure to swing her hips.

"Who is that?" Leon heard one co-worker breathe out.

 _My lunch appointment._ He calmly stood up, taking his wallet and keys.

* * *

In the backseat of Leon's car, Sora arched beneath him, gripping his hair tightly.

"Uhh...!"

His face was buried against her neck, letting the pleasure run through his veins. If she hadn't brought towels to cover the windows he didn't think he'd have the nerve to take her like this. Though, she did have a way of convincing him to be more creative than he was prone to be. He gasped suddenly, her body easing its tight grip on him.

"Sora..."

He laid on her for a moment, enjoying the feeling of her thighs against his sides, her chest rubbing his as she tried to catch her breath.

"Leon -"

"I'm heavy," he finished, taking a second to run his nose along her cheek, "I know."

They tried to maneuver on their sides, but she almost fell off the seats. He settled against the blanket she had laid out. She made herself comfortable on top of him. The music from her phone continued to play. Her fingers drew patterns against his chest and then she sat up, straddling him. Her skirt shifted back down to her hips, the material lightly brushing his stomach in a teasing way. She hadn't been patient enough to fully take off his shirt, merely unbuttoning it so she could at least touch him.

"You feel so good," she murmured, her hands running up his ribs with a sigh. She wanted more, but it was only their lunch break. "I brought Chinese."

He was slightly disappointed when her hands stopped. He caressed her thighs before sitting up, shifting her to his lap. They were limited on time. They'll have time later tonight to touch. She leaned over to the takeout bag, pulling out the boxes and setting them on the seat next to them. He had smelled the familiar scent, but her seduction had taken priority.

"Egg rolls?"

She pulled them out with a smile. "I don't disappoint."

She offered one to him. He took a bite out of it.

"How's the new job at the salon?"

She shrugged. "It's just appointment scheduling." She opened a box, chomping on some noodles. "Part time, so I still have to keep my donut cashier position."

He took the offered noodles thoughtfully. "Have you considered IT again?"

"Yeah. I did." She tsked. "But like I said, I'm better at making problems." She gave him a small smile. "I really don't have much to offer."

"...You're wrong."

She slurped up a noodle. "Mm?"

"You are brilliant," he murmured. "That virus you made told me as much."

She flushed a little. "Leon, that really wasn't anything."

"Yes it was."

"No, it wasn't."

"Yes it -" He faintly grinned. "Usually we're the reverse in these kinds of arguments."

"Yeah," she softly laughed. "You're the grumpy Mr. No, not me."

"In all seriousness," his hands went to her arms, lightly rubbing them, "you have more skills than you think you do." Pause. "You could work with me. I could teach you what you lack."

"Leon," she smiled, putting her forehead against his. "Thanks, but...I'm not an office kind of gal."

"But -"

She softly kissed him, her hands cupping his face. Then, she pulled away, giving him a box and a pair of chopsticks.

"You need to eat. I also brought some clean clothes for you to change into and some wipes."

He took the chopsticks silently. "Thank you."

He will relent for now.

ACS

Sora shifted the box of donuts in her hands as she waited in the elevator.

Her visit yesterday to Leon's office gave her an idea. And then the idea formed into a plan when Leon texted her that he would be in a meeting for an hour, delaying their lunch. While she basked in their time together, she did recall her vow to help him keep his house. A couple of ideas came to her, one directly appealing to Layla to let him have the house, and the other just bluntly threatening the blondie to back off.

But she didn't know where Layla was.

Because she didn't know, she couldn't very well plead or threaten her. She doubted Leon would tell her, regardless if he knew or not. Which brought her to something that she did know.

Yuri.

Layla's boyfriend.

Surely the blonde was staying with him. So if Sora found Yuri's house, she'd find Layla. It was logical enough. She used her skills to locate his house, but there were several properties under the Killian name. She wasn't certain if Layla would be at the condo by the beach or the nice apartment in the city. Those places were in the area, so she hoped it was one of those two.

The elevator dinged, signaling her stop. She took a breath in and then plastered a smile on her face. Confidently, she walked up to the receptionist desk and then looked around. And around.

No one was there.

 _Shoot!_ She didn't know which of the two hallways led to Yuri's office. She sighed, getting ready to flip a coin when she heard a thump to the right. She peeked down the hallway, saw no one, and then continued down. She could hear a muffled ruckus now. _What the heck is going on?_ Was there a fight going on in the office? Or maybe - An undeniable moan sounded out.

Or that.

Then she perked up. If it was Layla and Yuri, maybe she could get some dirt on them. After all, an illicit affair in an office setting was hardy a good thing, especially when it was the wife of an employee. If Layla's lawyer wanted to paint the woman out as the victim in the divorce and gain more leverage...Sora smiled wickedly. Some naughty photos would tear that down. She quickly fished out her phone, still carrying the box of donuts. She found Yuri's name and then put the box down. So, so carefully, she turned the door knob, hoping it was unlocked.

She gleefully cheered when it turned.

Through the crack, she took several photos and then closed it again. She scurried down the hallway, taking the donuts with her. Since she had this dirt, she didn't need to use the tracking device she hid in the box. That plan had several holes in it anyways. There was a good chance he would leave the box here in the office.

On her way back down to Leon's floor, she looked back at the photos, not having really seen what she got. Yuri and Layla were there, half dressed on the desk, but then her eyes widened at what else she saw.

"Now I know where the receptionist went," she muttered under her breath.

ACS

At dinner, Sora showed Leon what she found.

He stared at Yuri sandwiched between two women. "When did you take this?"

"Today," she sipped her virgin Bloody Mary, "when I was waiting for you to get out."

"Sora," he lightly shook his head. "We can't use these."

"Why not?"

"You were trespassing, for one. Plus an invasion of my boss' privacy."

"He didn't care about your private life when he stole your wife," she calmly retorted. "Besides, I went further in trying to find the receptionist." She look down into her glass. "Not my fault they didn't put a sock on the door knob."

Leon took a long breath in, pinching the bridge of his nose. "This is not how I want to operate."

"But it's a way to get your house back."

"By smearing Layla's reputation? And the receptionist's?"

She crossed her arms. "They both should have thought about that before joining Club Yuri."

"What about you?"

"What?"

"Did it not occur to you that, if provoked, they will find out about you and smear _your_ reputation?"

"They already know I exist," she waved off. "Besides, if they had any dirt I'm sure they would have brought it up by now."

"...I suppose." He folded his hands for a moment. "But even then...you're risking yourself by staying here."

She tilted her head. "You want me to go?"

"That's not what I said."

"Then who cares?"

" _I_ do." He stood up from the table, taking his empty plate. "I don't want people saying terrible things about you."

"Leon..." She followed him to the kitchen, putting her plate down in the sink. She hugged him from behind as he washed the dishes. "You're sweet, but I don't have some fancy reputation to uphold."

He rinsed his hands and then dried them, turning around to face her.

"I don't want you to be hurt."

"I don't want _to_ _be_ hurt," she murmured, looking up at him. "Do I have a reason to stay?"

Tentatively, he put a hand to her cheek. "...Yes."

"Then that's all I care about."

ACS

Halfway through the morning, Leon got a call from Yuri's receptionist.

 _"Mr. Killian would like to speak with you in his office."_

"I'll be there."

He finished what he was doing and then put his computer on stand by. He was up on Yuri's floor faster than he thought he would take. The receptionist did not look at him as he walked by. He knocked and was given permission to come in.

There, in the middle of the room was Yuri, looking pleased with himself.

"Oswald. Long time no see."

* * *

Sora typed in the latest appointment time in the salon.

"Ok, I have 11:30 am this Friday with Trinity. We'll see you then."

She hung up the phone. Then it started ringing again. She withheld the urge to groan. Stupid phones were crazy today. She didn't understand. It wasn't like it was prom season or something. She lowered her head a little and then lifted it back up with a wide smile on.

"Thank you for calling Silky Locks Salon, this is Sora. What can I do for you today?"

" _May."_

"Huh?"

 _"The correct phrase is 'What may I do for you today.' The word 'can' suggests that you either need permission to perform your duty or are unable to."_

"Ok...So do you need an appointment or you just busting my chops?"

The woman on the other end elegantly laughed. _"Are you always this coarse with customers?"_

Sora could feel herself bristling. "Look, either you make an appointment or I'm hanging up."

 _"I need my bangs trimmed today."_

"Today's pretty tight. Let me see here...There was a cancellation for the noon slot. Will you be able to make it?"

 _"Of course."_

"Ok." She opened up the schedule. "And your name?"

 _"Layla Oswald."_

* * *

Leon sat down when Yuri gestured to a chair.

"I'm sure you're wondering why I called you in." Yuri poured himself a drink and took a sip from it. "Ahh, that's the good stuff."

Leon sighed to himself. The man always was so leisurely.

Yuri sat back down, making himself comfortable on his chair. "It has come to my attention that there is an intruder lurking about the place, taking photos." He turned his monitor, showing someone in a cap squatting in front of his door and then rushing off. "But I cannot seem to identify the person."

Leon felt himself breath again. "Did they pass the receptionist?"

"Hmm. Lindsey was assisting me with a project at that time."

That was a new way of putting it. Leon shifted his hands, folding them over his crossed leg.

"We could make this floor key card only."

"Yes. That does sound good. But what of the spy?"

"Who?"

"The lurker taking photos. It's obviously a corporate spy. We need to regain those pictures back."

The man was an idiot. "I doubt they got anything valuable from that short amount of time."

"That's where I would have to disagree."

Yuri pulled up another window, clicking on a folder. Leon could feel his eyes widen involuntarily. It was a video from the parking garage surveillance.

Sora was pulling him close to kiss him. Her hands ran all over him until she finally decided to fish out the keys, beeping his car open. She pulled him inside the backseat. The towels went up and covered the windows. But the car began to rock a little. Yuri fast forwarded the video some until they emerged from the car. His hair and shirt were clearly rumpled. Her lipstick was gone and her shirt lopsided, revealing a lot of one shoulder. Yuri paused the video as they kissed again.

Leon looked at his boss. The man kept his smile, but his eyes were narrowed.

"You can see my dilemma," Yuri calmly said. "This spy is willing to use sexual advances upon my employees."

Leon felt his hands fist. "There's no reason to involve her."

Yuri's smile widened, but nothing was friendly about it. "It was not I that brought her into this."

* * *

Sora's fingers paused over the key board.

Leon's ex. Did she know who she was or was this the universe's idea of a joke?

 _"Did you get my name?"_

"Ah, yes, I did."

 _"No, actually. You did not. And will not."_

Sora frowned. "What are you talking about?"

" _You're the toy my husband is using."_

"Says the floozy playing leap frog with his boss and receptionist," Sora bit out.

 _"So it was you that was at the door."_

Sora bit her tongue to still it. Darn her and her loose mouth! "Don't worry, it won't happen again." Sora made a face. "It wasn't worth peeping in on."

 _"I highly doubt that."_

Sora frowned. "What?"

 _"You took photos."_

"...Who wants to know?"

 _"No one. It's not worth showing to other people,"_ some ice leaked out in her tone, " _if you both don't want to be permanently out of work."_

"Witch, please. You don't have that kind of pull."

 _"My father does. And believe me, he will do it."_

"Wow, that line sounds really used. Guess daddy doesn't mind having a slut for a daughter."

 _"Says the harlot doing the spread eagle in the back of a car."_

Sora blinked at that. "How'd -"

 _"You have photos, I have video. Next time be sure to cover the car mirrors."_

"You...zoomed in that far to watch us?"

 _"You're missing the point,"_ Layla dryly replied.

"Ah, so you're threatening us, right?"

" _Yes."_

"Hmmm. Hang on, let me tell Leon. Please hold, k?"

 _"Don't you dare -"_

Sora pushed the hold button on the phone and then pulled out her cell phone to text Leon.

Sora: Your ex knows we got funky in the parking lot. I think she wants the photos in exchange for our silence.

Leon: *typing message*

Sora: She was also kind of hitting on me too...I think? *insert confused emoji* Or she just likes watching people having sex.

Leon: *typing message*

Sora: Does Yuri know she's possibly bi? If she's the one that got the receptionist to join, she's most likely.

Leon: Let me reply.

Sora erased what she was currently typing.

Leon: Yes, she does. No, I don't think Yuri knew. Or myself.

Sora: Maybe that's why she married you. Long hair and muscles. Best of both worlds. ;)

Leon: Except the long hair is gone now.

Sora: Yeah... :( Will u grow it back? :D

Leon: We are deviating from the original problem.

Sora: ...

Leon: The blackmail

Sora: Oh yeah. I'm not really intimidated.

She tilted her head as a thought occurred to her.

Sora: Maybe they look at porn together.

The front door chimed as a customer entered. Sora looked up to greet them and then blinked. Leon calmly walked over to her desk, lightly shaking his head.

"Your attention span is worst through texting."

She shrugged. "Not my fault you give me time to think. So you know how I feel. What say you?"

"Answering to blackmail usually leads to further blackmail."

"Right. So I'll just tell her it's a no go. Wait. She said her dad will make sure we never work again."

"That is problematic." He lightly grinned. "Good thing I erased all saved phone calls and videos."

"What now?"

"I quit. Then I uploaded the virus you created, altering it to eat at the server's memories in those two areas."

Sora bit her lower lip. "And you say I talk dirty in your workplace." Then, she released it, realizing something. "They can still get evidence of us being together. And we still have the photos, so it'll just be a never ending battle."

"I did consider that," he murmured.

"Then...I should move out." She nodded decisively. "We need to stay away from each other."

Leon gave her a flat look. "To achieve what, exactly? I have limited funds to pay the divorce lawyer and both sides have dirt on each other, as you pointed out."

"Yeah, but I don't want to give them the opportunity to get more dirt."

"I appreciate what you are willing to do, but -"

"No buts! It's the home you grew up in and I, for one, want to see you succeed! You can't just -"

He cupped her face suddenly, catching her off guard. "That house was home," he quietly admitted. "But I realized..I want a new home. One that I choose with you."

"Leon..." She leaned in for a kiss and then abruptly pulled away. "Shoot. I still have Layla on hold." Amusedly, he watched as she picked up the phone again and then put it down. "She hung up. Maybe I should reverse dial and -"

"I don't care about Layla." She looked up at him, seeing him lean over her desk. "I care what you think."

"About getting a house together?"

He nodded. She bit her lower lip nervously, and then decided to just go for it.

"And...then maybe a kid or two. With a white picket fence and a neatly trimmed yard."

"Then, if it isn't an inconvenience, a wedding," he bemusedly added in, "Preferably before the kid or two."

"And if the kid happens before the wedding...?"

"...Sora?"

"I kind of...might be preggers..."

"..."

"Surprise?"

He sighed. "We can never do things linear."

"So you're not -"

"No."

"And you won't ask me to -"

"Of course not."

"...We were having a lot of sex."

He kissed her forehead. "Which is why I'm not too surprised."

She kneeled in her chair, nuzzling his neck. "I love you." He stilled for a moment. She frowned upon feeling him. "I'm sorry. Was that too soon? It didn't feel like it was."

"No...it wasn't."

"Good, 'cause I've been wanting to say that for a while now."

He closed his eyes. "...I love you too."

ACS

His alarm went off by his bedside table.

He shut it off, but was unable to roll out of bed. Sora's leg was around his waist and her fingers tangled in his growing hair. He was certain she was pleased with how fast his hair grew, judging by how often she clenched the locks during sex. He looked down at her sleeping face, drool coming out of her mouth. He touched her leg initially to move it, but then ended up stroking it.

She hummed a little pleasure tune, stirring. "Do that again."

He stroked her leg slower, going higher. She softly moaned, her leg tightening its hold around him. Her lashes fluttered open, smiling at him.

"Morning lover."

"Morning."

She bit her lip, her free hand playing with his pj collar. Her mouth came up to his ear, lightly nibbling it. She suddenly laid back completely, her leg around his waist making him follow her. He hovered over her, looking at her red hair against his light colored sheet, seeing how open she left the top collar of his sleep shirt that she insistent on keeping.

He was glad that they took the bed from the other house.

The coffee table and couch came to the new house too, along with the portion of carpet where they first had sex. Sora transformed it into a rug and placed it at the top of the stairs. He couldn't help but make love to her there every so often. When visitors came, he removed it and stashed it away in their closet. It was their secret. He was not willing to share it with anyone else.

His nose brushed against her neck, smelling her skin. Her hand came upon his face, lightly tracing his brows before placing it along his face. He felt the ring on her finger, letting the knowledge of its existence warm him. The divorce had taken a little over six months. He couldn't imagine how long it would have been had he not given up the house Layla so desperately wanted. He was certain she was able to sell it for quite a bit, but a part of him wondered if she just wanted to erase that part of their lives.

It did not matter anymore. But at the time, he had been curious.

"I cannot stay long." He felt her shiver as his lips grazed her pulse. "I have a client on the east coast this morning."

"Leon..."

They touched each other heatedly, her nails scratching his arms and back. He groaned in pleasure, opening his mouth as he moved her collar down. She arched sharply as he found her breast. He hadn't sucked her skin really, which had been a bit of a disappointment. But right now, he was avidly making up for it. She groaned as his tongue teased her, circling around the tip and then going over it slowly.

" _Kami!"_

He felt himself harden. Her hands were gripping his hair tightly, her chest deeply arched into him. She was so nimble, he couldn't believe he hadn't tried this early. His hip went between her legs, grinding against her. Her breath was getting heavier, her hands and legs more restless. He was bolder ever since they got married a couple of months ago.

Soft whimpers sounded from the baby monitor.

Sora half groaned. "Settle down honey," she quietly willed. Her head tossed back onto the pillow harshly as she bit her lip hard, Leon having grinded his narrow hip between her legs. "Mommy needs a little more time."

He chuckled against her breast, feeling her shiver. "Time for what?"

Her foot went under his shirt. "For daddy to learn a new lesson."

Before he responded, crying could be heard from the monitor. Sora groaned loudly. She loved her daughter, but their darling had terrible timing most of the time. She released her legs from around him. He stopped her before she could get off the bed.

"I'll get her."

She ran a hand along his face. Her parents' marriage had been crap. Most people in that scenario would have lower expectations for their own marriage or simply not get married. But Sora, she was a die hard dreamer. She hoped for better, hoped she could find the man to prove to her that her dreams were not unfounded.

It was harder to hope than to give up completely.

"Thanks."

He left the room. She softly sighed, stretching on the bed. She eyed the clock and then smiled. His meeting was still some time away. It depended on how long it took to feed and burp her daughter but she knew for a fact Leon still had to shower.

Morning shower love making sounded amazing.

* * *

Leon looked over the document with the client's request and then nodded.

" _This should be doable. I will have my partner test the solidity of the firewall once I am done with it."_

 _"Merci, Mr. Oswald."_

They ended the video call.

"I love it when you speak in French."

Leon removed his computer glasses. "Coffee?"

"I also have breakfast, but our bundle of joy wouldn't let me leave her in the playpen."

Leon accepted the coffee, admiring the sight of Sora and their baby girl sitting against her hip. Her big grey eyes looked around her daddy's home office with curiosity before extending her pudgy hand out towards her daddy. Leon put the mug down to take her, letting her play with his hair. Her own was a darker auburn color. Owning their own IT and security business had been difficult to start, but now they had a couple of loyal companies that went to them for many things, even recommending them to friends.

He didn't earn big bucks, but it allowed him time with his family.

"I'll be working on Mr. Leroy's security request." He ran a hand along his daughter's soft cheek. "I'll need you to try to hack into it after you test the altered fortifications of the Bernards' website."

Sora grinned at him. "Round two on the Bernards, isn't it?"

"You won't break through this time."

"Hm. Now I'm even more motivated to try it." She extended her hands for their daughter. "Come on darling. Daddy's got businesses to save." She placed her against her hip again. "I'll bring breakfast over in a sec."

"No rush."

She kissed his cheek. "See you, lover."

He watched them go and then started on work. She brought food in like she promised. He began to cut up his food evenly and then waited. The piano from the living room sounded out. He took a look at the clock. Right on time. She must have gotten their baby to settle down in the playpen. The instrument was her birthday present from him. She promised to pick up their lessons once she re-taught herself.

He sighed, a light smile on his face. He didn't think he could feel so content.

ACS

ACS

ACS

AN: And we are done! Yay!

I had actually planned to add a lot of drama with Sora thinking she had to leave him but then as I was typing it, the characters took it another way, making it more comedic. Sorry if people aren't fans of texting in stories, but it just seemed funny to do.

I couldn't think of a good name for their daughter and honestly, her appearance was so short...XD

Thank you all for reading! :3


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